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Tag: nuclear weapon

  • Boris Johnson says Vladimir Putin ‘would be crazy’ to use tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine

    There have been suggestions that the Russian president could carry out such a military strike as his forces continue to lose territory which they captured earlier in the invasion.

    Boris Johnson has told Sky News that he does not think Vladimir Putin will use a tactical nuclear weapon in his war in Ukraine.

    There have been suggestions that the Russian president could carry out such a military strike as his forces continue to lose territory which they captured earlier in the invasion.

    But in his first interview since leaving Number 10 for Sky News’ Ukraine: A Modern War programme, the ex-prime minister told Sky’s Mark Austin: “I don’t think he will, he’d be crazy to do so.”

    Mr Johnson also said he will be traveling to the COP27 climate summit in Egypt next week, as question marks remain over whether Rishi Sunak will join him.

    The former UK leader said it would be a “total disaster” for Russia, which would be put into a “cryogenic economic freeze” and Mr Putin would “lose a lot of the middle ground of global tacit acquiescence that he’s had”.

    Mentioning sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and South Asia, Mr Johnson said: “There’s a lot of willingness to give Putin the benefit of the doubt. That will go, the minute he does anything like that.

    “He would also crucially lose the patronage of the Chinese. And in his own country, I think he would trigger an absolutely hysterical reaction.”

    Mr Johnson said if there was such a military action from Mr Putin, there would have to be a response of some kind.

    “There are all sorts of options” both in NATO and the P3 nations (US, UK, and France), he said.

    What is a tactical nuclear weapon?

    But he added he thought it was “very, very, very, very unlikely that it will come to that (a tactical nuclear attack by Putin)”.

    He also said it was a “critical” and “pivotal moment” for the world.

    Looking ahead to how the conflict could be resolved, the former PM warned about the danger of trying “to comprise and find some sort of deal, some grubby bargain with Putin”, trying to encourage the Ukrainians to trade some of their territory, which Mr Johnson said, “will only encourage Putin to make further aggression”.

    Putin’s only aim is to ‘spread terror’

    He said that it is going to be very difficult for the Ukrainians to accept any deal that stops short of a full return of all the areas taken by Russia since the invasion began on 24 February.

    Mr Johnson also said it was “absolutely inevitable” that the Ukrainians will eventually win the war.

    “We have to show strategic patience and continue to support them,” he added.

    Source: Skynews.com

  • US expert: Putin’s difficulties make use of a tactical nuclear weapon ‘more likely’

    John Bolton, a former US national security adviser and ambassador to the United Nations, told Sky News the Russian president is in “greater trouble than at any point since the invasion”.

    Vladimir Putin’s mounting problems in Ukraine make Russia’s use of a tactical nuclear weapon more likely, a senior US expert has told Sky News.

    Tactical nuclear weapons are designed to be used on a battlefield.

    John Bolton, a former US national security adviser and ambassador to the United Nations, said that the Russian president is in “greater trouble than at any point since the invasion”.

    Discussing the Russian “annexation” of four occupied areas in eastern and southern Ukraine following a series of referendums described by Kyiv and the West as a “sham”, Mr Bolton said: “Obviously he (Putin) thought it would be a morale booster for Russia, (that) it would help lay the groundwork for future borders with Ukraine.

    “But the fact is, at least according to Putin’s view of the world, fighting is now taking place on the ‘soil of Russia’ and the Russian military is not doing very well.”

    Mr Bolton added: “So I think without question that increases Putin’s domestic difficulties in regular Russian politics and makes it somewhat more likely that the use of a tactical nuclear weapon might be possible.

    “Because with ‘Russian soil’ itself affected I think Putin could see that as regime-threatening, which would be the circumstance when use of a nuclear weapon would be more likely.”

    When asked what the US response might be, Mr Bolton said: “I don’t think it needs to be nuclear, depending on what the Russians actually do.

    “But I do think we should say it would be Vladimir Putin signing a suicide note if he authorised even a tactical nuclear weapon.

    “It’s very important that we deter the use of a nuclear weapon.

    “Otherwise the lesson that would be learned in China, Iran, and North Korea, would be exactly the wrong lesson.”

  • Ukraine war: Biden warns Putin not to use tactical nuclear weapons

    Russia has been cautioned not to use chemical or tactical nuclear weapons in the conflict in Ukraine by US Vice President Joe Biden.

    This will “alter the face of battle unlike anything since World War Two,” Mr. Biden said in an interview with CBS News.

    He remained mum regarding the US’s response to the use of such weapons.

    After its invasion of Ukraine in February, Russian President Vladimir Putin put the nation’s nuclear forces on “special” alert.

    He told defence chiefs it was because of “aggressive statements” by the West.

    Nuclear weapons have existed for almost 80 years and many countries see them as a deterrent that continues to guarantee their national security.

    Russia is estimated to have around 5,977 nuclear warheads, according to the Federation of American Scientists.

    It, however, remains unlikely that it intends to use such weapons.

    Tactical nuclear weapons are those which can be used at relatively short distances, as opposed to “strategic” nuclear weapons which can be launched over much longer distances and raise the spectre of all-out nuclear war.

    In an interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley in the White House, President Biden was asked what he would say to President Putin if he was considering using weapons of mass destruction in Ukraine.

    “Don’t, don’t, don’t,” was President Biden’s response.

    Mr Biden was then asked what the consequences would be for Mr Putin if such a line was crossed.

    “You think I would tell you if I knew exactly what it would be? Of course, I’m not gonna tell you. It’ll be consequential,” Mr Biden responded.

    “They’ll become more of a pariah in the world than they ever have been. And depending on the extent of what they do will determine what response would occur.”

    The war in Ukraine has not gone as well as the Kremlin had hoped.

    In recent days, Ukraine says it has recaptured more than 8,000 sq km (3,088 sq miles) of territory in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

    Despite the apparent setback, President Putin has insisted that Ukraine’s successful counter-offensive will not stop Russia’s plans of continuing its operations in the east of the country.