Just within fourth day of the Ukraine war, when Russian advance was slowed by unexpected resistance from the Ukrainian side, Vladimir Putin made first threat of escalation stating he would deploy tactical nuclear weapons if NATO became heavily involved in supporting Ukraine. During the past one-year, United States, its European allies and members of NATO – all of them are openly supporting and helping Ukraine, while US President Joe Biden is taking preparations of sending American foot soldiers to the Ukrainian battleground anytime soon. Britain is also taking similar preparations. Meanwhile, international media is becoming increasing favorable to Ukraine and hostile towards Vladimir Putin and Russia.
During the past one year, we have heard numerous rumors centering Vladimir Putin. We heard, he was suffering from terminal disease and was dying, while some of the Western media outlets said, Putin was ousted in a secret coup and placed under arrest. Others said, Vladimir Putin was continuing his activities from an underground facility at Kremlin. None of these claims or reports could be verified by any of the international media.
But we have a confirmed news here about Vladimir Putin. While Putin has already been isolated by the international media and almost all of the media outlets in the world are favorable to Ukraine, Putin’s own men – right inside his information and foreign ministries have already gone rogue and are working against the Russia’s interest. Most of them, especially the Russian missions in the foreign countries – are directly or indirectly insisting the foreign media – including those which have been either maintaining neutrality or been favorable to Russia – to shift their policy and abandon Vladimir Putin.
For sure, Vladimir Putin and those loyal to him are not at all aware of such dangerous scenario. They are totally unaware of those backstabbers in Russian missions in foreign countries. But the state machinery in Russia is gradually going against Vladimir Putin, and most possibly the Russian president is yet in total dark about this matter.
With such extreme adversity right inside Russia, how long Vladimir Putin really can continue the Ukraine war? Or, can he sustain once America and other European nations send their troops to fight against Moscow? In that case, shall Russian soldiers retreat from Ukraine the way Soviet troops left Afghanistan few decades ago?
The answer is negative. Rather in such case, Vladimir Putin will certainly opt for nuclear option.
The most recent announcement from Moscow said that Russian nuclear weapons will be forward-based in Belarus. These will mainly be nuclear-armed versions of the Iskander missile, which will be placed close to Belarus’s western border with NATO states. Russia will also train Belarusian pilots in flying planes capable of carrying nuclear weapons.
Of itself this is not new. Nuclear weapons were based in Belarus during the Cold War, but in the current context the symbolism is clear enough: Putin is backing up his nuclear threats with more facts on the ground. Meanwhile, the United States is upgrading the nuclear storage facilities at Lakenheath, its main air base in the UK, meaning that tactical nuclear weapons can be based there again, after a 15-year lapse.
Question here is – who will first shoot the nuclear weapon. According to experts – it will be Russia, and Moscow in that case may shoot dozens of missiles fitted with nuclear warhead targeting a number of cities in the United States. Russian nuclear bombs are at least 500 times powerful than those atomic bombs dropped by Americans at Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan.
Meaning, within minutes of Russia’s shooting nuclear weapons – America and a number of its European allies will be devastated.
