By Alexander
Smith
The United States has warned Russia of "catastrophic" consequences if the Kremlin uses nuclear weapons after setbacks in its war in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened again that he might resort to weapons of mass destruction as he escalated the conflict last week by calling up military reservists and moving forward with annexation of occupied areas that are voting to join Russia.
[Russia initiates referendums to annex occupied territories of Ukraine and denies the flight of men called up to the Army]
With their mobilization effort facing domestic backlash and kyiv forces pressing for further gains after their impressive counteroffensive, two senior US officials reported Sunday that the White House had made clear to Moscow the harsh response the US would face. Kremlin in case of a nuclear attack.
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National security adviser Jake Sullivan told NBC's Meet the Press on Sunday that the consequences "would be catastrophic if Russia went down the dark path of using nuclear weapons."
Pressed by host Chuck Todd on what those countermeasures would be, Sullivan said only: "On private channels we've explained in more detail exactly what that would mean."
Secretary of State Antony Blinken used similar language in an interview with CBS News' 60 Minutes.
[Should the West take Putin's nuclear threats seriously? This is what the experts say]
"It is very important that Moscow hear us and know from us that the consequences would be horrible, and we have made that very clear," Blinken said, adding that the US response would be "catastrophic," without elaborating.
Putin has made a series of nuclear threats against Ukraine and the West as a whole since he launched his invasion just over seven months ago.
But last week he sharply stepped up Russia's efforts, signaling that he was willing to escalate rather than accept defeat on the battlefield.
Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken speaks during the United Nations Security Council meeting at United Nations Headquarters to discuss the conflict in Ukraine on September 22, 2022 in New York CityMichael M. Santiago/Getty Images
In an address to the nation on Wednesday, Putin said that if Russia's "territorial integrity" was threatened "we will certainly use all means at our disposal" to retaliate, adding that "it is not a bluff."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that he believes the Russian president.
[Russian troops have raped and tortured children during the war with Ukraine, according to a UN investigation]
"I don't think he's bluffing," Zelenskyy said Sunday on CBS's Face the Nation.
“He wants to scare the whole world.
These are the first steps of their nuclear blackmail,” he added.
Russia has the largest nuclear arsenal in the world, with almost 6,000 nuclear warheads and 1,500 of them currently deployed, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, an independent think tank that tracks global stockpiles.
The Kremlin's thinly veiled threats come in the context of votes taking place in four regions of southern and eastern Ukraine that its forces control, at least partially: Luhansk and Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson.
Western officials have ruled out fake votes with predetermined results.
Putin's warnings come after a litany of setbacks for the Kremlin.
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Analysts see the looming annexation and nuclear threats as a combined effort to deter Western support for Ukraine and to stem the tide of a pair of counteroffensives that have cast doubt on Russia's long-term control over the occupied territories.
[A “horror movie”: Ukraine denounces bodies in the streets and war crimes after the Russian withdrawal in the north]
Asked if Moscow would consider using nuclear weapons to defend those regions, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday that they would be under the "full protection of the state."
Two months into the invasion, Putin's army withdrew from a costly and ultimately unsuccessful assault on the Ukrainian capital kyiv, opting instead to concentrate its forces in the country's east, where it has supported pro-Russian separatists since 2014.
However, in recent weeks, Ukraine has mounted a strong counterattack in those areas as well, leading to heavy Russian losses and unusual domestic unrest from pro-war nationalists.
This has resulted in thousands of Russian civilians being rounded up to be sent to the front lines.
It has also triggered an exodus of Russians trying to flee the draft, clogging border crossings and hogging available flights.
