Putin resumes ‘sabre-rattling’ with warning Russia ready for nuclear war

Ahead of weekend elections, Russian president boasts his country’s nuclear capabilities are superior to the West’s.

President Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia is “ready” to use nuclear weapons if there is a threat to its statehood.

In a recorded interview broadcast by Russian media on Wednesday, the Kremlin chief said his country is ready for a nuclear war from a “military-technical” point of view. His comments signal a resumption of nuclear “sabre-rattling“, as it was branded a year ago, just ahead of this weekend’s presidential election.

Two weeks ago, Putin claimed during an annual address to the nation of a “real” risk of nuclear war if Western countries sent troops to fight in Ukraine. On Wednesday, he insisted that Russia’s nuclear arsenal and troops hold the advantage over the West.

“From a military-technical point of view, we are, of course, ready. They [Russian forces] are constantly in a state of combat readiness,” Putin said during an interview with the Rossiya-1 state TV channel.

“Our triad, the nuclear triad, it is more modern than any other triad,” he continued. “Only we and the Americans actually have such triads. And we have advanced much more here.”