Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that the threat of nuclear war is growing, but insisted that Russia has not lost its mind and will not be the first to use nuclear weapons, the BBC writes.
Speaking at Russia’s annual human rights council congress, Putin said that Russia would use nuclear weapons only as a retaliatory move. Western officials believe Putin had hoped for a quick victory, and Russia’s ability to use nuclear weapons has drawn particular attention since February.
In a video address from Moscow, Putin warned that it would be wrong to hide the risks of nuclear war, but said that Russia would not be the first to use nuclear weapons, and certainly would not use them as a form of intimidation. He said:
«We have not gone mad, we are aware of what nuclear weapons are. We aren’t about to run around the world brandishing this weapon like a razor.»
While Putin acknowledged the war would drag on, he also said the results were already significant. For example, Russia is said to have acquired new territories. He boasted that the annexations have made the Sea of Azov an internal sea of Russia – this is what Tsar Peter the Great had already sought. Putin has compared himself to the Tsar before. However, despite declarations that Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Luhansk, and Donetsk regions are Russian territory, Moscow does not have full control over any of them. In November, the Russians were forced to withdraw from Kherson. Enraged by losses at the front, Russia carries out heavy shelling of Ukrainian energy infrastructure.
Currently, Ukraine’s energy transmission networks are in a critical state, and millions of people are left without electricity, heating, and water. This is happening at a time when the temperature in the territory of Ukraine has dropped below zero. The authorities have set up shelters throughout the country where it is possible to warm up and charge electrical devices, but this may not be enough. There are fears that many will freeze to death. Meantime, Russia uses illegal weapons. The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense published a video on Twitter with a phosphorus bomb attack.
All hell has broken loose over Avdiyivka.But even this will not help the russians to win. pic.twitter.com/ODB0TELHMN
— Defense of Ukraine (@DefenceU) December 7, 2022
Meanwhile, in Russia, any criticism of the war is silenced. Before the Congress of the Human Rights Council, ten of its members expressed doubts about the necessity of the war and were removed from the list of participants. Instead, supporters of the war were invited to congress. The topics to be discussed were also scrutinized.
Read also: UN: Russian forces killed hundreds of civilians at the beginning of the war