Putin to decide whether nuclear threat is a bluff
Louis Seagray
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The Pentagon is studying Putin’s nuclear order
US officials said on Monday that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s order mobilizing his nuclear forces was “dangerous,” but that they had not noticed any change in Russia’s strategic threat.
According to officials, Russian troops in Ukraine continue to make slow progress, hampered by fuel supply problems, and downplayed reports that Belarusian troops intend to reinforce Moscow’s invasion force in Ukraine.
Putin announced Sunday, four days after Moscow launched the invasion, that he had ordered the army’s deterrence forces into a “special combat mode.”
Biden is not the only one downplaying the Russian stance: below is an excerpt from a FEMA release:
FEMA recommends the following steps to prevent ‘significant radiation exposure,’ which include “Try to maintain a distance of at least six feet between yourself and people who are not part of your household,” and “If possible, wear a mask if you’re sheltering with people who are not part of your household.”
In case you forgot that COVID is still around and is still apparently the REAL danger to life and limb.
US State Department and Defense Department officials said they were still trying to determine just what actions would be taken as a result of the order.
“We think provocative rhetoric regarding nuclear weapons is dangerous, adds to the risk of miscalculation, should be avoided, and we will not indulge in it,” a State Department spokesperson said.
“Russia and the United States have long agreed that nuclear use would have devastating consequences, and have stated many times, including earlier this year, that a nuclear war cannot be won, and must never be fought,” the spokesperson said.
There were no apparent changes in Russia’s position on its nuclear arsenal, according to a Pentagon official, but Putin’s order was “unnecessary and extremely aggressive.”
“I don’t believe we’ve seen anything specific as a result of the direction that he gave,” the official told reporters.
In spite of the United States and its NATO allies supplying arms to Ukraine to counter Russian invasion, US officials claimed Russia was not facing a military threat from the West.
Putin’s language in his order did not conform to what might be expected when nuclear forces are mobilized, according to the Pentagon official.
“It’s not a doctrinal term, and the way he characterized it, a ‘special combat duty alert’ … it’s not a term of art in what we understand to be Russian doctrine,” the official said.
“Nuclear Energy Atomic Energy” by Sakucae is licensed under CC 2.0
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