Putin could send train with nuclear weapons to Ukraine

Created: 04/10/2022 16:39

By: Lukas Zigo

Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin should order nuclear special unit to Ukraine.

Video footage reportedly shows the train departing.

Moscow – With the annexation of Ukrainian territories through (sham) referendums, Russian President Vladimir Putin created the intention for the use of nuclear weapons.

Experts and commentators worldwide see the use of such weapons as more likely than before the sham annexation.

Now a long freight train with special military equipment is on its way to the war zone.

Footage shared via Telegram by the pro-Russian channel

is said to show the train loaded with equipment and weapons rolling through Russia towards the war zone in Ukraine.

Image released by Russia's state-run Sputnik news agency via AP shows Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, at the ceremony to annex the Russian-held Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia and Kherson.

© Grigory Sysoyev/dpa

The train is linked to the 12th Main Directorate of the Russian Defense Ministry.

This is "responsible for the storage, maintenance, transport and issue of nuclear ammunition to the units," Poland-based defense expert Konrad Muzyka told

.

Vladimir Putin is said to have ordered the use of this train.

War in Ukraine: Is there a threat of nuclear weapons use or are military exercises planned?

The transfer of heavy military hardware belonging to nuclear-capable units does not necessarily mean that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, Muzyka told the

Muzyka noted that it could be a "signal to the West that Moscow is escalating the conflict," but added that Russia's Strategic Missile Forces (RVSN) are known for conducting extensive training exercises in the fall.

However, an attack on land is still unlikely.

However, Putin could demonstrate his willingness to use nuclear weapons.

A senior defense official told

that a deployment in the Black Sea was more likely.

However, Putin risks inadvertently hitting Russian towns near the border with Ukraine.

Ukraine war: Putin's nuclear threats become more serious due to Russian distress

With Russian troops in distress, Russia's repeated nuclear threats are resonating more widely in the West.

Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) was concerned: "We take his words very seriously, anything else would be negligent," she said in an interview with the

.

In the now more than 220 days of war, Putin has "repeatedly shown that he does not shy away from the worst war crimes".

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The Kremlin chief said on September 21: “If the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will of course use all means at our disposal to defend Russia and our people.

This is not a bluff.” As a result of the annexation, which was not recognized internationally, Putin now sees the Donetsk, Luhansk, Cherson and Zaporizhia regions as Russian state territory.

Russian military doctrine provides for the use of nuclear weapons only in an attack on Russian territory.

(lz)