Russia Keeps Reminding NATO It Has Nukes

While the Russian foreign minister warns of a possible nuclear war with NATO, countries in the international alliance and its allies have pledged this week to send more weapons to embattled Ukraine.

In a TV interview with state media late Monday night, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said NATO was inflaming the war in Ukraine by sending arms to President Volodymyr Zelesnkyy’s government, which he called a “regime” loyal to Western overlords that “pumped weapons into” it. 

“The danger is serious, real. It cannot be underestimated,” Lavrov said about the prospects of a nuclear war, while sitting down with a correspondent from Russia’s Channel One station (often described as a propaganda outlet for the Kremlin). 

“During the Cuban missile crisis, there were not many ‘written rules.’ But the rules of conduct were clear enough. Moscow understood how Washington was behaving. Washington understood how Moscow was behaving.”

“Now there are few rules left,” he said. 

Hours after Lavrov’s interview, U.S. Secretary of Defense Loyd Austin III, fresh from a top-secret trip to Kyiv Monday, led a meeting of more than 40 allies at an air base in Germany to discuss transferring new weapons to Ukraine and how best to support Ukraine.

“We’re here to help Ukraine win the fight against Russia’s unjust invasion and to build up Ukraine’s defenses for tomorrow’s challenges,” he said, highlighting the need to provide Kyiv with heavy weapons. Austin made clear that these plans were urgent, especially as the battle for Donbas begins in earnest.

At the meeting, Germany—which has come under heavy scrutiny for its lack of military assistance to Ukraine—said it was providing Ukraine with over 30 anti-aircraft armored vehicles, while Poland, a country Lavrov directly characterized as a belligerent nation, said it is delivering its neighbor tanks. 

The Biden administration has already pledged billions in weapons and training for Ukraine; including howitzer artillery guns, Javelin anti-tank weapons, Stinger anti-aircraft systems, attack drones, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. 

Last week, Washington admitted to giving Ukraine’s air force spare parts for its fixed wing aircraft, a sign the U.S. might be, in the future, willing to provide heavier aerial assault weapons after previously saying it wouldn’t dispense this kind of aid to Ukraine. 

This isn’t the first time nuclear threats have come from the Kremlin since the war began. At the outset of Russia’s invasion, President Vladimir Putin threatened a serious response to any nation caught providing military aid to Ukraine. And last week, Putin announced the testing of a new nuclear warhead, which was seen as a direct provocation to NATO.

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