Russia to hold tactical nuclear weapons drills amid 'threats by certain Western officials'

Russia will hold drills to practice the usage of tactical nuclear weapons to counter what it referred to as "provocative statements and threats from certain Western officials," Russia's Defense Ministry said on May 6.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly made nuclear threats against Ukraine and the West since the beginning of the full-scale invasion in February 2022. The threats have failed to materialize, and Russia continues to wage its all-out war without its nuclear arsenal.

The drills will include the "preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons," commonly referred to as tactical nuclear weapons.

The defense ministry said the exercise's purpose is to "maintain the readiness of personnel and equipment" and "unconditionally ensure the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Russian state."

The ministry did not specify which Western officials it said were making threats or provocative statements.

The Financial Times reported in February, citing leaked documents, that Russia's doctrine for the usage of tactical nuclear weapons ranged "from an enemy incursion on Russian territory to more specific triggers, such as the destruction of 20% of Russia's strategic ballistic missile submarines."

Opinion: Russia’s nuclear giant is falling through the sanctions cracks

Even as the 38th anniversary of the Chornobyl nuclear disaster has come and gone, the nuclear threat posed by Moscow continues to grow. Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear energy company, has a hand in this – namely, by financing Russia’s war against Ukraine, fostering global energy dependencies that…

The Kyiv IndependentOlena Lapenko