A red line that should not be crossed. Since the start of what Russia still calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine on February 24, Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to use nuclear weapons. In September, during a televised speech, the Russian leader assured once again that Moscow would use “all the weapons at its disposal” to protect itself.
NATO’s Strong Potential Response
Asked about these threats by the US chain ABC, David Petraeus, former director of the CIA between 2011 and 2012 and retired general, assured that an attack of this type would mark the end of the conflict and potentially the annihilation by the Russian army of NATO in Ukrainian territory.
“Just to give you an idea, NATO could respond by leading a collective effort that would eliminate all identifiable Russian forces on the battlefield in Ukraine, Crimea and even the Black Sea,” he predicted.
In recent days, several voices have been raised in Russia in favor of the use of more radical methods against Ukraine, including that of the Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov who called for the use of “low power nuclear weapons”.
The Kremlin considered this call too “emotional” while on Monday night, Pyotr Tolstoy, vice president of the Duma (lower house of the Russian parliament), said on BFMTV “sure and sure” that his country “is not going to use nuclear weapons.”
An “irreversible” situation for Putin
Beyond the nuclear issue, David Petraeus made a rather pessimistic assessment of the Russian military situation in Ukrainian territory. According to him, Vladimir Putin is now facing an “irreversible” situation and the latest measures, including the partial mobilization of 300,000 men, will not change anything.
“President Zelensky and Ukraine have mobilized much better than Russia. Ukraine has recruited, trained, equipped, organized and employed a force incomparably better than Russia. […] No annexation, no nuclear threat, not even veiled, will be able to get him out of this situation,” said the former soldier.
The former CIA leader goes further and emphasizes that, in his opinion, Ukraine would totally overthrow Russia. “Putin can’t do anything else at this point, he will continue to lose on the battlefield,” he insists.
On the ground, this state of affairs is confirmed day after day. Last weekend, Ukrainian forces announced they had seized the strategic city of Lyman, located in the Russian-annexed Donetsk region. In recent hours, Kyiv has maintained pressure on Russian soldiers, unable at this time to control all the territories they occupy.
Source: BFM TV
