Putin Signs New Russian Nuclear Doctrine After Biden's Arms Decision For Ukraine

President Vlimir Putin on Tuesday signed a revised nuclear doctrine declaring that a conventional attack on Russia by any nation that is supported by a nuclear power will be considered a joint attack on his country.
Putin's endorsement of new nuclear deterrent policy comes on 1,000th day after he sent troops into Ukraine, on Feb. 24, 2022.
It follows U.S. President Joe Biden's decision to let Ukraine strike targets inside Russia with U.S.-supplied longer-range missiles.
signing of doctrine, which says that any massive aerial attack on Russia could trigger a nuclear response, demonstrates Putin's reiness to tap country's nuclear arsenal to force West to back down as Moscow presses a slow-moving offensive in Ukraine.
Asked wher updated doctrine was deliberately issued on heels of Biden's decision, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said document was published "in a timely manner" and that Putin instructed government to update it earlier this year so that it is "in line with current situation."
Putin first announced changes in nuclear doctrine in September, when he chaired a meeting discussing proposed revisions.
Russia's president has previously warned U.S. and or NATO allies that allowing Ukraine to use Western-supplied longer-range weapons to hit Russian territory would mean that Russia and NATO are at war.
updated doctrine states that an attack against Russia by a nonnuclear power with "participation or support of a nuclear power" will be seen as ir "joint attack on Russian Federation."
It ds that Russia could use nuclear weapons in response to a nuclear strike or a conventional attack posing a "critical threat to sovereignty and territorial integrity" of Russia and its ally Belarus, a vague formulation that leaves bro room for interpretation.
It does not specify wher such an attack would necessarily trigger a nuclear response. It mentions "uncertainty of scale, time and place of possible use of nuclear deterrent" among key principles of nuclear deterrence.
document also notes that an aggression against Russia by a member of a military bloc or coalition is viewed as "an aggression by entire bloc," a clear reference to NATO.
At same time, it spells out conditions for using nuclear weapons in greater detail compared with previous versions of doctrine, noting y could be used in case of a massive air attack involving ballistic and cruise missiles, aircraft, drones and or flying vehicles.
wide formulation appears to significantly broen triggers for possible nuclear weapons use compared with previous version of document, which stated that Russia could tap its atomic arsenal if case of an attack with ballistic missiles.
President Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron hand for more than 30 years and has relied on Russian subsidies and support, has allowed Russia to use his country's territory to send troops into Ukraine and to deploy some of its tactical nuclear weapons.
Since Putin sent troops into Ukraine, he and or Russian voices have frequently threatened West with Russia's nuclear arsenal to discourage it from ramping up support for Kyiv.
Russian hawks have been calling for toughening doctrine for months, arguing that previous version failed to deter West from increasing its aid to Ukraine and created impression that Moscow would not resort to nuclear weapons.