Russia has trained its Navy to strike targets deep inside Europe with nuclear-capable arms in a potential conflict with NATO, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Aug. 13, referencing secret files provided by undisclosed Western sources.
The files seen by the FT contain maps of targets across western Europe, reaching as far as the west coast of France and Barrow-in-Furness in the U.K.
The alleged plans, drawn up between 2008 and 2014, include lists of targets for missiles that can carry both conventional warheads and tactical nuclear weapons. The revealed files show how Russia anticipated a potential conflict with NATO, planning for a series of strikes across western Europe, the FT writes.
The documents note that tactical nuclear weapons should be used "in combination with other means of destruction" to achieve Russia's goal and highlight the advantages of using nuclear strikes at the early stages of the conflict, according to the outlet.
Analysts and former officials told the FT that Russia's ability to launch attacks on Europe means that various targets across the continent would be at risk as soon as the Russian military clashed with NATO forces in front-line countries like the Baltic states and Poland.
"Their concept of war is total war," said Jeffrey Lewis, a professor at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey who studies arms control, in a comment to the FT.
The Kremlin has repeatedly made nuclear threats against Ukraine and the West since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The threats have failed to materialize, but earlier this year, Russia carried out a series of drills to practice a tactical nuclear strike.
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