While NATO is not currently involved in the conflict, it announced on Thursday that it would send 40,000 additional troops to countries bordering the aggressor state. NATO has confirmed the deployment of four new battlegroups totaling 40,000 troops to Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania.

While NATO is not currently involved in the conflict, it announced on Thursday that it would send 40,000 additional troops to countries bordering the aggressor state. NATO has confirmed the deployment of four new battlegroups totaling 40,000 troops to Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Romania.

On Thursday, Joe Biden also stated that NATO has never been more united, which surprised President Putin.

So far, NATO countries have presented a united front against Russia in the conflict, imposing broad sanctions and providing assistance to Ukrainian troops.

But Russia remains undeterred, and earlier this week threatened to use the weapons if NATO threatened its territory.

“If Russia is provoked by NATO, if Russia is attacked by NATO, why not, we are a nuclear power,” said Dmitry Polyanskiy, one of Russia’s top diplomats in the United States.

Lace and supplies are being delivered to Ukrainian troops.

But Russia remains undeterred, and earlier this week threatened to use the weapons if NATO threatened its territory.

“It’s not the right thing to say, in my opinion. But threatening Russia and attempting to interfere is not the right thing to do.

“Of course, when dealing with a nuclear power, you have to calculate all of the possible outcomes of your behaviour.””

President Putin ordered Russia’s nuclear forces to be placed on ‘high alert’ in February.

In response, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated on March 14 that “the prospect of nuclear conflict, once unthinkable, has now returned to the realm of possibility.”

Will Putin use nuclear weapons?

“Off the battlefield, Putin has already demonstrated his willingness to use brinkmanship to weaken international resolve to maintain pressure on his regime and punish it for mounting an illegal war on Ukraine,” said Henry Wilkinson, Chief Intelligence Officer at security intelligence firm Dragonfly.

“His public order to escalate Russia’s nuclear defence posture, coupled with reports that Belarus may nuclearize, was clearly intended to jolt the world and apply pressure on the West, while also portraying Russia as a major threat to the Russian people.”

“This posturing appears to be a direct response to the severe sanctions imposed on his regime, as well as an attempt to reinforce his narrative of a NATO threat to justify his war at this point, rather than a genuine nuclear threat.”

In what scenario would Russia use nuclear weapons?

In an interview, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Russia would only use nuclear weapons if its very existence was threatened.

“We have a concept of domestic security, and it’s public,” he said on Tuesday. You can read about all of the reasons why nuclear weapons are used.

“So, if it represents an existential threat to our country, it can be used in accordance with our concept.”

Russia has access to the world’s largest stockpile of nuclear warheads.

According to the Federation of American Scientists, Russia possessed 5,977 nuclear weapons as of 2022, and this number is expected to grow.