A prominent ally of Vladimir Putin has called for Russia to explicitly threaten nuclear strikes against Nato countries that support Ukraine. Sergei Karaganov, a former adviser to the Russian president, argued in an interview with Kommersant that Moscow could launch a limited nuclear attack on a Nato member without triggering a full-scale nuclear war.
Karaganov claimed the United States was lying about its nuclear guarantees to allies. “The assertion that any limited use of nuclear weapons will necessarily lead to a general nuclear Armageddon does not stand up to criticism,” he said. He added: “I am not calling for a dangerous path, I am calling for saving the world and Russia. Either we win this war, or we fall apart.”
The remarks come as Western leaders, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Foreign Secretary David Lammy, met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to discuss allowing longer-range strikes inside Russia. Ukraine has used Western weapons on border regions but seeks permission to deploy US-made ATACMS and UK Storm Shadow missiles deeper into Russian territory.
Russia’s lower house speaker, Vyacheslav Volodin, warned that allowing such strikes would make the US and its allies parties to the war. Karaganov went further, urging Russia to invoke its “right to respond to any massive strikes on our territory with a nuclear strike”. He argued that Russia’s nuclear doctrine should ensure “all current and future enemies are sure that Russia is ready to use nuclear weapons”.
While Karaganov does not represent official policy, his views are closely watched as he regularly advises Putin. Russia’s deputy foreign minister confirmed on 3 September that the nuclear doctrine would be revised, raising fears that the threshold for nuclear use could be lowered. The current doctrine considers nuclear weapons a deterrent, to be used only in response to a nuclear attack or if the state’s existence is threatened.
Since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Kremlin has repeatedly issued nuclear threats. In May, security chief Dmitry Medvedev said Russia was not bluffing about using tactical nuclear weapons. Putin himself stated in March that Russia was “ready” for nuclear war from a military-technical standpoint, though he added that Russia has never felt the need to use such weapons in Ukraine.
