Russia could use nuclear weapons but has ‘no need to’, says Putin

MOSCOW – President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia could “theoretically” use nuclear weapons if there was a threat to its territorial integrity or existence, but that it did not need to. 

He was speaking at the plenary session of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum. 

“Nuclear weapons have been made to ensure our security in the broadest sense of the word and the existence of the Russian state, but we... have no such need (to use them),” Mr Putin said.

He also confirmed that Russia had sent nuclear arms to its ally Belarus, which borders Ukraine. 

“The first nuclear warheads were delivered to the territory of Belarus... This is the first part,” Mr Putin told the forum.

The Russian leader had announced the plans to send tactical nuclear weapons – less powerful than strategic ones – in March. 

“By the end of summer, the end of the year, we will complete the process” of transferring tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, Mr Putin said. 

Tactical nuclear arms are battlefield weapons that, while devastating, have a smaller yield than long-range strategic weapons. 

Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko has allowed his territory – which borders Ukraine as well as the European Union and Nato members Poland and Lithuania – to serve as a launch pad for Russia’s Ukraine offensive. 

Mr Putin’s announcement had spurred fears of nuclear conflict, but experts and governments said it was unlikely it would change the course of the conflict. 

Mr Putin said the weapons were meant as deterrence to “those who are thinking of inflicting a strategic defeat on Russia”.

The Russian president also lauded the health of his country’s public finances and said additional defence spending had been needed to bolster national security as Moscow conducts what it calls

a “special military operation” in Ukraine.

Mr Putin said the public finances were generally balanced, putting the US$42 billion (S$56 billion) budget deficit so far this year largely down to the postponement of some planned expenditures.

Analysts and data, however, suggest that slumping energy revenues and soaring military spending have played a key role.

“Naturally, additional funds were needed to strengthen defence and security, to purchase weapons,” Mr Putin said. “We were forced to do this to protect our country’s sovereignty.

“I should say that on the whole this justifies itself from an economic point of view,” Mr Putin added. REUTERS, AFP