Putin spokesperson says Russia not ruling out use of nuclear weapons [Video]

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin is not ruling out the use of nuclear weapons.
• Peskov told CNN that Russia would use it if there “is an existential threat for our country.”
• Putin has ordered Russia’s nuclear forces to be put on high alert several days after the February 24 invasion Ukraine

Dmitry Peskov, a Kremlin spokesperson, said Russian President Vladimir Putin would use nuclear weapons if he felt there is an “existential threat” to Russia.

On Tuesday, Peskov told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that Putin’s threat to use nuclear arms was meant to send a message.

“President Putin intends to make the world listen to and understand our concerns,” Peskov told CNN. “We’ve been trying to convey our concerns to the world — to Europe, to the United States — for a couple of decades, but no one would listen to us.”

Russia’s nuclear forces were put on high alert several days after it started attacking Ukraine on February 24. Putin has also warned any nation that would interfere “should know that Russia’s response will be immediate and will lead you to such consequences as you have never experienced in your history.”

Peskov is not ruling out the use of nuclear weapons.

“We have a concept of domestic security, and, well, it’s public. You can read all the reasons for nuclear arms to be used,” he said. “If it is an existential threat for our country, then it can be used.”

Russia’s nuclear policy allows the country to use nuclear weapons in two scenarios: in response to the use of nuclear weapons or other unconventional arms against Moscow or its allies, or in response to “aggression” with conventional arms “when the very existence of the state is put under threat.” The 2020 statement was signed by Putin, according to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

Source: Insider