Enlarge image
US President Joe Biden
Photo: IMAGO/Lev Radin / IMAGO/Pacific Press Agency
US President Joe Biden has clearly warned of the danger of a nuclear confrontation with Russia.
After threats from the Kremlin, the danger of an escalation with dramatic consequences was greater than it had been in 60 years, said Biden on Thursday evening (local time), according to journalists traveling with him at a performance in New York.
The world has not faced the prospect of "Armageddon" since the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, Biden said.
He knows Russian President Vladimir Putin pretty well, Biden said.
And the Kremlin boss does not joke when he talks about the potential use of tactical nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, as the Russian military is weak in the fighting in Ukraine.
At the same time, he does not believe that it would be possible to simply use tactical nuclear weapons without this leading to "Armageddon," stressed the US President.
more on the subject
War in Eastern Europe: Biden warns of "Armageddon", Moscow condemns Selenskyj's words about NATO pre-emptive strikes
Ukrainian counter-offensive: The front in the south is shakingBy Oliver Imhof and Niklas Marienhagen
Russia recently annexed four occupied Ukrainian territories in violation of international law.
Putin, among others, announced that they would defend it with all available means.
For some time now, the USA has been warning the Russian leadership in direct contacts that the use of tactical nuclear weapons would have serious consequences.
At the same time, the White House did not want to comment publicly on what these consequences might look like.
The US government also said it had not seen any concrete steps taken by Russia to use nuclear weapons.
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a dramatic culmination of the Cold War in October 1962, after the Soviet Union stationed medium-range missiles on the island.
The two superpowers had come close to a nuclear war in the roughly two-week conflict, but eliminated the danger with negotiations.
mfh/dpa
