Officials from the Russian state parliament have issued a new warning to the West, urging all Western powers to carefully read the updated version of Russia’s nuclear doctrine.
A deputy in the Russian State Duma and a reserve major general, Leonid Ivlev, has urged NATO to analyze the document presented by Vladimir Putin before a potential conflict with Russia.
“Neither the West nor Kiev will be able to prevent Russia from retaliating if a decision is made to implement it,” Ivlev said.
Ivlev primarily blamed the West for the current tensions, as well as a possible escalation.
“Hotheads in NATO should not forget, but rather learn by heart the provisions of the Russian nuclear doctrine, especially paragraph 19, which defines the conditions for the possible use of nuclear weapons,” he said.
Tensions between Russia and the West increased after the Russian military launched a medium-range missile, dubbed the Oreshnik, in the Dnipropetrovsk region.
The missile, which is generally capable of delivering nuclear weapons, carried a conventional warhead, and its use has sparked heated reactions in the West, with officials describing the move as a new level of escalation.
“This was a new type of lethal capability that was deployed on the battlefield. That certainly concerns us… We don’t have an assessment of the missile’s impact at this time, but it’s something we’re certainly concerned about,” the US Department of Defense said.
