{"id":44301,"date":"2020-06-02T15:54:27","date_gmt":"2020-06-02T15:54:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/06\/02\/new-russian-policy-allows-use-of-atomic-weapons-against-non-nuclear-strike\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T23:34:06","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:34:06","slug":"new-russian-policy-allows-use-of-atomic-weapons-against-non-nuclear-strike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/flashpoints\/2020\/06\/02\/new-russian-policy-allows-use-of-atomic-weapons-against-non-nuclear-strike\/","title":{"rendered":"New Russian policy allows use of atomic weapons against non-nuclear strike"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">MOSCOW \u2014 President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday endorsed Russia\u2019s nuclear deterrent policy, which allows him to use atomic weapons in response to a conventional strike targeting the nation\u2019s critical government and military infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By including a non-nuclear attack as a possible trigger for Russian nuclear retaliation, the document appears to send a warning signal to the U.S. The new expanded wording reflects Russian concerns about the development of prospective weapons that could give Washington the capability to knock out key military assets and government facilities without resorting to atomic weapons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In line with Russian military doctrine, the new document reaffirms that the country could use nuclear weapons in response to a nuclear attack or an aggression involving conventional weapons that \u201cthreatens the very existence of the state.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the policy document now also offers a detailed description of situations that could trigger the use of nuclear weapons. They include the use of nuclear weapons or other weapons of mass destruction against Russia or its allies and an enemy attack with conventional weapons that threatens the country&#8217;s existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In addition to that, the document now states that Russia could use its nuclear arsenals if it gets \u201creliable information\u201d about the launch of ballistic missiles targeting its territory or its allies and also in the case of \u201denemy impact on critically important government or military facilities of the Russian Federation, the incapacitation of which could result in the failure of retaliatory action of nuclear forces.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">U.S.-Russia relations are at post-Cold War lows over the Ukrainian crisis, the accusations of Russian meddling in the U.S. 2016 presidential election and other differences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last year, both Moscow and Washington withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty. The only U.S.-Russia nuclear arms control agreement still standing is the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/2020\/05\/21\/us-russia-new-start-talks-starting-says-envoy\/\" target=\"_blank\">New START treaty<\/a>, which was signed in 2010 by U.S. President Barack Obama and then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. The pact limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers and envisages sweeping on-site inspections to verify compliance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Russia has offered to extend the New START, which expires in February 2021, while the Trump administration has pushed for a new arms control pact that would also include China. Moscow has described that idea as unfeasible, pointing at Beijing\u2019s refusal to negotiate any deal that would reduce its much smaller nuclear arsenal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a call with members of his Security Council over the weekend, Putin warned that the New START treaty is bound to expire, but &#8220;the negotiations on that crucial issue, important not just for us but for the entire world, have failed to start.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday endorsed Russia\u2019s nuclear deterrent policy, which allows him to use atomic weapons in response to a conventional strike targeting the nation\u2019s critical government and military 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By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>New Russian policy allows use of atomic weapons against non-nuclear strike - Army Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday endorsed Russia\u2019s nuclear deterrent policy, which allows him to use atomic weapons in response to a conventional strike targeting the nation\u2019s critical government and military infrastructure.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"New Russian policy allows use of atomic weapons against non-nuclear strike\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday endorsed Russia\u2019s nuclear deterrent policy, which allows him to use atomic weapons in response to a conventional strike targeting the nation\u2019s critical government and military infrastructure.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/flashpoints\/2020\/06\/02\/new-russian-policy-allows-use-of-atomic-weapons-against-non-nuclear-strike\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Army Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-06-02T15:54:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-07T23:34:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Vladimir Isachenkov, The Associated Press\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Vladimir Isachenkov, The Associated Press\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta 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