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Russia, together with the USA, has the most nuclear missiles ever. (Archive image) © -/YNA/dpa
Russia is again training with nuclear weapons, officially for self-defense in an emergency. Tension is rising not only in the Ukraine war.
Moscow – In the golden autumn months, when the mushroom season is in full swing, Russian President Vladimir Putin also goes mushroom hunting – but he seems to be particularly fascinated by a very specific “mushroom”: the mushroom cloud. While nature rests, the war in Ukraine reaches a new, frightening dimension. On Tuesday (October 29), Putin conducted a large-scale nuclear weapons exercise that, according to the Kremlin, was a simulation of a retaliatory strike.
How CBS News reports, Putin emphasized in a video conference with senior military officials that the exercise was intended to simulate the use of nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles by senior officers. Defense Minister Andrei Belousov said the goal was to prepare Russia for a massive retaliation if the country were subjected to a nuclear attack by the enemy.
Russia starts nuclear weapons exercise: According to Putin for “sovereignty and security”
According to a Russian Defense Ministry post on Telegram, the test included the firing of a long-range Yars missile from the launch pad in Plesetsk, as well as the firing of additional long-range missiles from nuclear submarines in the Barents Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk. Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed that all missiles had successfully reached their targets.
Putin once again underlined the role of Russia’s nuclear arsenal as a “reliable guarantor of the country’s sovereignty and security,” reports the Moscow Times. “In view of increasing geopolitical tensions and emerging external threats, it is essential to have modern and combat-ready strategic forces,” the Kremlin chief added. Putin also announced that Russia would continue to modernize its nuclear forces to ensure faster response and greater precision. Russia definitely wants to get involved in a “new arms race”.
The military drills came about a month after President Vladimir Putin announced plans to expand Russia’s policy on the use of nuclear weapons. The Kremlin stated laut Moscow Timesthese adjustments should be understood as a warning to Western states that are thinking about providing long-range missiles to Ukraine.
Nuclear exercises by the Russian armed forces: Putin has been preparing for a long time
But Putin’s mushroom hunt is nothing new. This year, for example, Russian autocrat Putin had his nuclear forces on the border with Ukraine training on the potential use of non-strategic nuclear weapons. In May, a video from the Russian Ministry of Defense circulated showing the preparatory deployment of an RS-24 “Yars” nuclear missile Bild and t-online reported.
The Russian News Agency Tass At the beginning of April, the success of a maneuver from the end of March was reported: “The Strategic Missile Forces completed a command and staff exercise with the Irkutsk missile formation, which was armed with Yars rocket launchers. In total, over 3,000 men and around 300 large vehicles were involved in the exercises,” wrote Tass with reference to the Russian Ministry of Defense.
Nuclear weapons as a “last resort to protect” Russia: Putin could “reduce the entire globe to rubble”
Although Putin at the exercises on Tuesday, according to Moscow Timesstressed that the use of nuclear weapons is only seen as a “last resort to protect state security,” the Kremlin leader also revealed his obsession with the most dangerous type of “mushrooms.” To create a mushroom cloud, Putin has a huge arsenal of nuclear weapons.
According to various scientists quoted by ZDF, there is no doubt about their usability. “The fact is that Russia has almost 6,000 nuclear weapons. Even if half of these weapons were not operational, Russia would still have enough explosive power to reduce the entire globe to rubble,” explains Ulrich Kühn. (lw)
