Such weapons can be launched on the same short-range missiles Russia is currently using to bombard Ukraine, such as its Iskander ballistic missile, which has a range of about 500 kilometers. Of these, the ones of largest yield-the “strategic” weapons-are deployed on submarines, bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles.īut Russia also possesses some 2,000 tactical nuclear weapons kept in storage facilities throughout the country, developed to be used against troops and installations in a small area or in a limited engagement. In comparison, the Hiroshima bomb was about 15 kilotons.) Russia has about 4,500 nuclear warheads in its arsenal. (For example, the U.S.’s newest version of its B61 nuclear bomb can release 0.3, 1.5, 10 or 50 kilotons of explosive energy. Most nuclear weapons today are variable-yield, or “dial-a-yield,” providing a set amount of explosive energy that can range from fractions of a kiloton to multiples of a megaton. In the world of nuclear weapons, tactical means an exceedingly large amount of explosive energy and strategic means even larger. In the current crisis, Putin clearly wants the US and NATO to know that if the West were to intervene with military force on behalf of Ukraine, he might reach for his so-called tactical (or “nonstrategic”) nuclear weapons. Putin likes to wave about his nuclear weapons as a reminder to the West (and perhaps to himself) that Russia is still a great power. In 2015, Russia threatened Danish warships with nuclear weapons if Denmark joined NATO’s missile defense system. He also did so in 2014 during Russia’s invasion of Crimea, when Russian leaders talked openly about putting nuclear weapons on alert. This is not the first time Putin has rattled the nuclear saber. They continue to worry about the (remote) possibility of a Russian conventional attack beyond Ukraine. On balance, NATO states do not seem very reassured by their vaunted nuclear deterrence. Thus, the nuclear balance of terror likely deters a wider European war but leaves Ukraine to struggle on with only limited support and perhaps eventually to be swallowed. On the other side of the ledger, NATO’s nuclear weapons presumably deter Russia from expanding the war to NATO countries, such as Poland, Romania or the Baltic states. In practice this would mean shooting down Russian planes. for the creation of a “no-fly zone” over some or all of Ukraine, the Biden administration has wisely resisted. Russia’s nuclear weapons deter the West from intervening with conventional military forces to defend Ukraine. Most obvious is that Putin is using nuclear deterrence not to protect Russia but rather to have his way in Ukraine. However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine casts a harsh light on its downsides. This concept is widely credited for helping prevent war between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It also exposes the limits of the West’s reliance on nuclear deterrence.ĭeterrence refers to the idea that possessing nuclear weapons protects a nation from attack, through the threat of overwhelming retaliation. The blatant aggression against Ukraine has shocked Europe and the world. Since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin has given orders to increase the alert level of Russia’s nuclear forces and has made veiled nuclear threats.
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