President Vladimir Putin warned the West on Wednesday that Russia could use nuclear weapons if it was struck with conventional missiles, and that Moscow would consider any assault on it supported by nuclear power to be a joint attack.
The decision to change Russia’s official nuclear doctrine is the Kremlin’s answer to deliberations in the United States and Britain about whether or not to give Ukraine permission to fire conventional Western missiles into Russia.
Putin, opening a meeting of Russia’s Security Council, said that the changes were in response to a swiftly changing global landscape that had thrown up new threats and risks for Russia.
“It is proposed that aggression against Russia by any non-nuclear state, but with the participation or support of a nuclear state, be considered as their joint attack on the Russian Federation,” Putin said.
“The conditions for Russia’s transition to the use of nuclear weapons are also clearly fixed,” Putin said, adding that Moscow would consider such a move if it detected the start of a massive launch of missiles, aircraft or drones against it.
Russia can only be forced into peace, Zelensky tells UN Security Council
World leaders were this week in New York City for the 79th United Nations General Assembly to discuss global issues and highlight their countries’ priorities.
The UN Security Council held a special meeting on Ukraine, where Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for action over “talks” to discuss the maintenance of Ukraine’s peace and security.
“Putin has broken so many international norms and rules that he won’t stop on his own. Russia can only be forced into peace,” Zelensky said.
Russian forces keep targeting Ukraine’s energy resources and could soon target nuclear power plants, he warned, saying he recently received a report that Putin plans to attack the country’s nuclear power plants and infrastructure.
“Russia has destroyed all our thermal power plants and a large part of our hydroelectric capacity. This is how Putin is preparing for winter, hoping to torment millions of Ukrainians … Putin wants to leave them in the dark and [force] Ukraine to suffer and surrender,” he said.
Zelensky warned that any missile or drone strike or any critical incident in Ukraine’s energy system could lead to a “nuclear disaster.”
“God forbid Russia causes a nuclear disaster at one of our nuclear power plants. Radiation will not respect state borders,” he noted, adding that the end of the war “will happen not because someone got tired, not because someone traded something with Putin; Russia’s war against Ukraine will end because the UN charter will work. It must work. Our Ukrainian right to self-defense must prevail.”
Zelensky’s “Victory Plan”
Zelensky this week is expected to fully outline his “victory plan” to US President Joe Biden, before sharing it with both presidential candidates, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris, US lawmakers, and international partners. The plan is likely to include Kyiv’s repeated request to use Western long-range missile systems on targets inside Russia. The Ukrainian leader has been seeking permission to use British-French-made Storm Shadow missiles on Russian territory, with UK support, but negotiations with the US are ongoing, as the weapons use some US technology.
Stoltenberg says Ukraine’s future is in NATO
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who will be stepping down from his role on October 1, posted on X about his meeting with the Ukrainian president.
Calling Zelensky his “good friend,” Stoltenberg said they had agreed that “Ukraine’s future is in NATO”.
Stoltenberg added: “We will continue to work together to bring that day closer, and to help Ukraine prevail in its fight for freedom.”
Two killed, 12 injured by Russian guided bombs in eastern Ukraine
A Russian guided-bomb strike on Ukraine’s eastern city of Kramatorsk on Wednesday killed at least two people and injured 12 more, including three children, according to Vadym Filashkin, the Donetsk region governor.
Russian troops used three highly destructive bombs in the attack on the town center that damaged two apartment blocks, shops and cars, Filashkin posted on Telegram, according to Reuters. He wrote:
“This is another Russian war crime and another sad reminder that there are no absolutely safe places left in the Donetsk region.”
First 60 vehicles delivered to National Guard of Ukraine with EUAM support
The European Union Advisory Mission to Ukraine (EUAM Ukraine) has handed over 60 soft-skin vehicles to the National Guard of Ukraine (NGU).
These vehicles will support NGU units conducting stability policing in liberated and adjacent territories in the Kherson, Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kharkiv, and Mykolaiv regions. The handover will enable the NGU to carry out its duties and help restore the rule of law and public trust.
This marks the first handover within an €8 million project, funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and implemented by EUAM. The project aims at strengthening the operational capabilities of Ukraine’s civilian security sector to stabilize liberated and adjacent areas and ensure their full reintegration into Ukrainian society.
Compiled by Ana Dumbadze
