Putin may launch nuclear strike 'to cause misery amid Russian failure to conquer Ukraine'
Vladimir Putin could use nuclear weapons in Ukraine if he feels defeat is imminent, a leading think-tank has warned.
Moscow has prompted fresh concern in recent days over its willingness to deploy the devastating weapons, last week announcing it would move nuclear missiles into Belarus before today commencing exercises with its Yars intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) systems.
In a research paper for the UK's leading foreign policy think tank Chatham House, Russia and Eurasia expert Keir Giles warned there is a 'non-zero' chance Putin could seek to use nukes in Ukraine.
He wrote: 'A nuclear strike could be ordered if there is no longer any possibility of claiming conventional victory and a powerful destructive attack on Ukraine is perceived as the only means of avoiding admission of a clear defeat.
'The moment at which Putin feels his options are exhausted is likely to be the most significantly dangerous decision point,' he concluded.
Giles pointed out that nuclear weapons would have very little military utility on the ground in Ukraine, given that the frontline stretches hundreds of miles and that any strike would not only kill Ukrainians, but also irradiate the land and render it uninhabitable for Russian troops.
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