Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree approving the country’s updated nuclear doctrine after US President Joe Biden authorised Ukraine to fire long-range missiles deep into Russia.
The doctrine comes into force on Tuesday, 19 November, with an earlier decree on nuclear deterrence policy becoming null and void, according to Russian media.
Among the key conditions for the possible use of nuclear weapons, Russia cited “aggression” by non-nuclear-weapon states backed by nuclear powers. Even the use of conventional weapons could be grounds for a nuclear response, according to the document.
Russia’s adversaries are defined as “individual states and military coalitions that view the Russian Federation as a potential adversary,” as well as those with nuclear weapons or “significant combat capabilities of general-purpose forces.” In other words, Moscow could use nuclear weapons after any member of the military alliances gets involved in the war in Ukraine.
The doctrine update should ensure “that a potential adversary understands the inevitability of retaliation in the event of aggression against Russia and/or its allies,” the document said.
US Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Brian A. Nichols, confirmed that Biden authorised Ukraine to launch long-range weapons strikes against Russian territory. This was the first official confirmation from a US official following media reports on Sunday.
The previous doctrine, outlined in 2020, stated that Russia could deploy nuclear weapons in the event of a nuclear attack or a conventional attack that threatened the existence of the state.
