Russia says it will use nuclear weapons only if country's existence is threatened
India Today
Russia will only use nuclear weapons if there is a threat to its existence, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.
Russia will only use nuclear weapons when there is a "threat to the existence of the state", Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with PBS Newshour on Monday.
He added, "We have a security concept that very clearly states that only when there is a threat to the existence of the state, we can and will actually use nuclear weapons to eliminate the threat to the existence of our country.”
Days after Russian troops invaded Ukraine, Russian President Putin had announced on February 28 that he had put the country's strategic nuclear forces on high alert, triggering global alarm.
Now, in the interview on Monday, Dmitry Peskov said that any outcome of Russia's 'operation' in Ukraine would not be a reason for use of nuclear weapons.
"Any outcome of the operation [in Ukraine], of course, is not a reason for usage of a nuclear weapon," Peskov said.
Meanwhile, on US President Joe Biden's 'Putin cannot remain in power' remark, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was a cause for 'alarm'.
"For God's sake, this man cannot remain in power," Biden had said on Saturday at the end of a speech to a crowd in Warsaw.
