Russian Prez Putin said on Thursday that Russia was thinking about possible changes to its doctrine on the use of nuclear weapons. The existing doctrine states that Russia may use such weapons in response to a nuclear attack or in the event of a conventional attack that poses an existential threat to the state.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, some hawks among Russian military analysts have been advocating that Russia should lower its threshold for nuclear use.Putin said, however, that there was no need for Russia to carry out a pre-emptive nuclear strike.
He was speaking to reporters a day after visiting nuclear-armed North Korea for a summit with its leader, Kim Jong-un. The two leaders signed a treaty under which each side promised to provide immediate military assistance to the other in the event of armed aggression against either one of them. Russian state media quoted Putin as saying that Moscow expected that its cooperation with North Korea would serve as a deterrent to the West, but that there was no need to use North Korean soldiers in the war in Ukraine.
Putin also said he did not rule out Russia supplying high-precision weapons to North Korea. This announcement prompted South Korea to say it would consider sending arms to Ukraine, a major policy change. The Russian prez said, in response, Seoul would be making “a big mistake” if it decides to supply arms to Ukraine. He added South Korea has “nothing to worry”.