Russia begins tactical nuclear drills near Ukraine in response to Western ‘threats’

Russia on Tuesday (May 21) announced that its forces have started the first stage of exercises near Ukraine ordered by President Vladimir Putin to simulate preparation for the launch of tactical nuclear weapons, in what Moscow said was a response to Western “threats”.

Russia begins drills

Amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, Moscow has repeatedly made veiled threats to use nuclear weapons and boasted about the readiness of its arsenal if it senses an existential threat.

Add WION as a Preferred Source

WATCH |Moscow holds nuke drills near Ukraine

Russia has linked the recent drills to what it calls “militant statements” by Western officials, including the remarks made by French President Emmanuel Macron who floated the possibility of sending European troops to fight Moscow in Ukraine.

The Russian defence ministry said that the drills are taking place in the Southern Military District, which borders and includes parts of Ukraine that Moscow has claimed to annex amid the ongoing war. However, the specific location of the drills remained unclear.

A report by Reuters citing nuclear analysts said that the exercises are designed as a warning signal by Putin to deter the West from getting more involved in the war in Ukraine.

Also Read |Russia has no plans of capturing Ukraine's Kharkiv, forces creating 'buffer zone': Putin

The drills are designed to test “the readiness of personnel and equipment of non-strategic nuclear weapons combat units to respond and to unconditionally ensure the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Russian state,” said the Russian defence ministry.

It added that they were a “response to provocative statements and threats by certain Western officials.”

The ministry also said that the first stage of the drills involved Iskander and Kinzhal missiles. The exercise also involves Belarus, where Russia said that it had deployed tactical nuclear weapons last year, a development that both Minsk and Moscow confirmed.

What were the ‘militant statements’?

Russian officials pointed to statements by the French president about NATO countries not ruling out the possibility of deploying troops to Ukraine as well as a statement by British Foreign Minister David Cameron who said Kyiv had the right to use weapons provided by the United Kingdom to strike targets inside the Russian territory.

Russia also cited the provision of long-range British, French and United States ATACMS missiles to Kyiv.

Also Read |Russia claims to have captured another village in Kharkiv region

“The exercises are, obviously, a signal in response to discussion of NATO countries’ troops in Ukraine. The most important features are advance announcement and visibility,” Nikolai Sokov, a former Soviet and Russian arms control official, told Reuters.

He also said that the Western militaries will be watching the drills closely in an attempt to draw conclusions about how much warning time they would have before Russia deploys them for real, he added.

Earlier this month, the Russian foreign ministry had said that the drills should send a “sobering signal” to the West and its “puppets” in Ukraine.

(With inputs from agencies)