Vladimir Putin is under increasing pressure at home and abroad, but the Russian leader is continuing to flex his nuclear muscles with a series of nuclear drills amid escalating Ukraine war tensions
Desperate Vladimir Putin has triggered fears of “something big” after launching a massive 64,000-troop nuclear war games blitz. The Russian tyrant showed off his nuclear arsenal this week alongside his Belarus lapdog Alexander Lukashenko.
Experts have warned the joint military drills could be a precursor to a massive escalation, with Russia’s latest intermediate-range nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile system deployed to Belarus. A paranoid Putin boasted on Thursday that it was “important to further boost the level of readiness of strategic and tactical nuclear forces” as his forces test-fired a hypersonic missile.
The Russian Defence Ministry confirmed the high-stakes exercises were designed for the “preparation and use of nuclear forces under the threat of aggression”.
The terrifying war games included a massive show of strength involving, 64,000 troops, 200 plus missile launchers and 140 aircraft. A total of 73 surface warships 13 submarines also took part. The massive manoeuvres featured a chilling assortment of short and medium-range weapons.
Unlike standard intercontinental missiles built to wipe entire cities off the map, tactical nuclear weapons are designed to obliterate troops on the battlefield.
The low-yield arsenal includes aerial bombs, artillery munitions, and warheads for short and medium-range missiles.
Moscow bragged that Russian armed forces successfully test-fired Yars and Sineva ICBMs, as well as medium-range sea-launched Zircon and air-launched Kinzhal missiles, claiming all targets were obliterated.
Meanwhile, Belarusian troops joined the chaos by test-firing a short-range Iskander ballistic missile inside Russia, the Mirror reports.
Speaking to Al-Jazeera Bremen University researcher Nikolay Mitrokhin said: “Something big is taking place, something that will be significant for international politics in general, and for mass media, including the very supply of nuclear arms.”
Putin has consistently rattled his nuclear sabre since launching a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
He claims Moscow will keep total control over its nukes stationed in Belarus, which directly borders Ukraine and NATO allies Latvia, Lithuania and Poland – but has chillingly given Lukashenko permission to choose targets if WW3 breaks out.
In a desperate bid to terrify the West, the Russian leader recently ripped up Moscow’s nuclear playbook. Under the new rules, any conventional assault on Russia backed by a nuclear-armed nation will be treated as a joint attack.
The move was a blatant attempt to stop Western allies from letting Ukraine blast Russia with long-range missiles, drastically lowering the threshold for Putin to press the nuclear button.
But NATO’s top brass aren’t backing down. This week, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte fired back with a devastating warning, declaring that any use of nuclear weapons would trigger a “devastating” response.
Minsk and Moscow claim this week’s drills were a direct response to a “threat of aggression” – though neither side has explained what that threat is.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Russia is trying to “drag Belarus into an expansion of the war” to create a new flashpoint for Kyiv.
Belarus was previously used as a launchpad for Russian troops during the failed blitz on Kyiv in February 2022.
However, experts believe a fresh assault from the north is unlikely for now, with the Kyiv-based Penta think-tank revealing Russian troop numbers in Belarus are currently “insufficient” to launch a new invasion.
Analysts say Putin is growing increasingly desperate as the war spins out of his control. His claims to the Russian public that the conflict is just a distant “special military operation” are crumbling fast, thanks to relentless Ukrainian strikes smashing Russian infrastructure.
With furious locals facing strict internet blackouts and mounting military failures, the heat is turning up on the under-fire dictator.
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