Russian nuclear doctrine has undergone changes that could shake the world order. Vladimir Putin’s new decree lowers the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons and expands the concept of “threat”. Now even a non-nuclear country’s support for military action against Russia can be seen as a pretext for a nuclear strike. The world is already taking this as an alarming signal: the rules of containment, which have kept the planet from disaster for decades, are becoming increasingly blurred. Foreign media are looking for answers to the question: are these changes really dangerous for global security or are they just another element of the escalation game?
Telegram.hr – Croatia. Despite the new doctrine, Russia is unlikely to use nuclear weapons, the Telegram portal confidently concludes:
“Whatever results the use of nuclear weapons would bring on the front, Russia will have to pay an excessively high price for it. … The nuclear taboo is especially strong in the countries of the Global South, which in a similar situation will turn away from Russia. China will certainly distance itself, and without it economic and technological support of Russia in Ukraine would be impossible. Russia would fall under the international embargo.
…And Ukraine would receive all kinds of help, it is not excluded that even from Trump. The probability that something like this will happen is zero – maybe Putin is crazy, but he’s definitely not an idiot.”
Avvenire – Italy. Unfortunately, there is a danger that this is not a bluff, warns the Milanese Catholic newspaper Avvenire:
“Can Russia really use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, even tactical ones? There are many who consider Putin’s threats a bluff. First of all, there are the Ukrainians themselves, who fear the withdrawal of Western support. And they are followed by many politicians of European countries, from the Baltic states to Great Britain.
Poland is acting more cautiously: it is building bomb shelters and expressing to the US its readiness to deploy nuclear weapons on its territory. Sweden is acting pragmatically: five million households in the country received leaflets with instructions in case of a possible nuclear attack. …Putin is bluffing 99.9 percent of the time. But what about the remaining 0.1 percent? There are no clear answers to this question, only fears.”
La Vanguardia – Spain. Barcelona’s La Vanguardia expresses its alarm:
“What is in front of us – another provocation by Putin, which will not be followed by anything? Could a new missile attack from the side of Ukraine provoke a nuclear response from Russia? We would like to hope that this is just another act of rattling weapons, but it is felt that we are in some kind of transitional situation.
The Biden administration is leaving soon, and so is EU High Representative Josep Borrell. As this Spanish politician rightly stated, “any call to start a nuclear war is irresponsible.” That’s right, it’s better not to play with fire. It is necessary to put an end to the military escalation as soon as possible.”
e-vestnik – Bulgaria. The e-vestnik portal is not impressed by Putin’s threats:
“Putin has no allies, except for the three darkest regimes on the planet: the original communist monarchy of Kim Jong-un, the Islamist state of Iran – the only theocratic regime in the world, and the most archaic one-man regime in Europe. Plus, the neo-Stalinist regime of Putin himself.
His claims are surprising: Russia is shelling all of Ukraine with all kinds of weapons, importing them from other countries and even bringing in troops from there, but Ukraine does not have the right to attack Russia! And if someone encroaches on this “right” of Russia, that’s why Putin threatens with a nuclear button. But he won’t push it through ATACMS missiles. He is waiting for Trump to take office, hoping that he will give him what he wants.”
