The War in Ukraine Could Lead to Nuclear War
With his original war aims in shambles, a desperate Vladimir Putin is openly threatening nuclear warfare in Ukraine. The rhetoric of nuclear retaliation and escalation is a risk to the entire world, and, yes, you should be alarmed.
Russian citizens drafted during the partial mobilization begin their military trainings after a military call-up for the Russia-Ukraine war in Rostov, Russia, on October 2, 2022. (Arkady Budnitsky / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Referencing the “precedent” of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Vladimir Putin in a speech last Friday announced the illegal annexation of parts of Ukrainian territory and threatened to use “all available means” to prevent their recapture by Ukrainian forces.
In response, the world heard serious talk of nuclear retaliation and escalation coming from high officials in Washington for the first time in many years.
I spoke about these alarming developments with Anatol Lieven, director of the Eurasia Program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft and the author of numerous books, including Ukraine and Russia: A Fraternal Rivalry (1999).
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