Interesting Article if Russia uses Nuclear weapons in Ukraine

In the Atlantic . Sobering Reading imo .
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/06/russia-ukraine-nuclear-weapon-us-response/661315/

 

I agree Marlon that it's sobering, but any reading around nuclear warfare is. I don't think ( obviously backed up by blind faith ) that Putin will risk a nuclear attack of any kind...only a lunatic would, and I don't believe Putin is that.
His invasion of Ukraine was calculated as part of his long term plan..although miscalculated as it turns out, he didn't realise ( as probably none of us did) that Russia is militarily weak with the bulk of his arms being designed
and in many cases built before most of Russia's population were born.
He is fighting this war with the lives of Buryats and Chechens from the far eastern republics, Russian speaking Luhansk and Donbask separatists or Wagner Group 'contractors' in the main, and hiding the casualties from the people,
so far Muscovites and St Petersburg people have been sheltered from the reality, he can continue dragging the war out on that basis trying to call a unilateral halt when 'denazification' has been achieved... open the nuclear
pandora's box and that can't continue.
He has found he has an Airforce incapable of subduing Ukraine and a Navy so vulnerable that he must fear that NATO could destroy it in very short order, I hope I'm right in thinking he is now in the position of accepting limited
'victory' as the best outcome rather than upping the stakes.

 

the thing with using nukes is the ground is toxic to all parties after use

 

Not according to the article , they have nuclear weapons that doesn’t do that which surprised me tbh .

 

No-one can answer that with any certainty, but my guess is that those wanting to continue the war would be happy to leave Putin in place so at least he can 'own' the war. Those wanting to stop I'm sure would like to see him gone, but wanting it and actually doing it are massively different things.
A number of high profile Russians have been found dead recently, only yesterday the former head of military procurement was found lifeless near his house...it's a bloody dangerous game.

 

I think they are talking about Battlefield Tactical Nuclear devices that allegedly don't have the level of radioactive fallout that the big bomb has.

 

It’s taken him years to fill Govt places and he’d already imposed his trusted security people into position and even then added tiers just in case .
He’s been slowly grooming the Russian Public ridiculing the West with his TV moguls .
Even treating the Russian Hooligans that rushed the England fans in France as Heroes .
He ridiculed us over the Salisbury poisonings aided by our Tory Government who whilst publicly berating the act and imposing puny sanctions were still chasing the Oligarchs for their handouts .

 

Excellent article, if a little pessimistic about the chances of Putin using a nuke. My enforced isolation has had me re-watching the brilliant World at War documentary series and I was particularly struck by the Stalingrad episode.
Just when it seemed they were finished the Russians pulled another million troops or hundreds of T-40 tanks out of thin air. Everyone assumed their pretty pathetic showing against Finland proved they were weak and easily beaten. Sound familiar? Russia’s money reserve is being topped up ironically by the sanctions- sky high fuel prices and now India are buying Russian oil in rupees, no doubt China will buy it in their currency, the days of the petro-dollar may be over? Anyway I don’t see a scenario now whereby Russia gets so desperate they drop a nuke, tactical or otherwise.

 

I largely agree with your comment, the only thing I would say is that it's been largely forgotten that Russia was kept afloat in the early and middle stages of WW2 by Western kit, the US supplied over 400,000 Jeeps .. 7000 tanks, 12,000 aircraft, Britain supplied over 7000 aircraft, 20 odd ships, 6000 tanks, 5000 anti tank guns, thousands of aircraft engines... and all the other types of necessary kit.... but possibly most critical were the Ultra intercepts and other intelligence, without that lot The Soviets might have succumbed.

 

Russia should have been removed from Ukraine long ago. One country should not still be in the fight when so much of the world are against them.

 

Most of the equipment was from Britain via the arctic convoys where many merchant navy service men perished in U Boat attacks .
The manpower of Russian Troops was immaterial to Stalin who often sent thousand of men into battle without weapons on the assumption that the enemy wouldvrun out of ammunition and overcome .
This was especially true in Stalingrad where lots of the Russian Troops were mustered ftom the Ghoulags and deemed expendable. Which tbh any Soviet to Stalin was expendable .