ESCALATION TO NUCLEAR WAR ‘REMAINS EXTREMELY LOW’: THINK TANK

Sun 26 March 2023:

Analysts at the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) has said that the risk of escalation to nuclear war “remains extremely low”.

“ISW continues to assess that Putin is a risk-averse actor who repeatedly threatens to use nuclear weapons without any intention of following through in order to break Western resolve,” it wrote.

However, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons called Putin’s announcement an extremely dangerous escalation.

“In the context of the war in Ukraine, the likelihood of miscalculation or misinterpretation is extremely high. Sharing nuclear weapons makes the situation much worse and risks catastrophic humanitarian consequences,” it said on Twitter.

Ukraine says Russia ‘took Belarus as a nuclear hostage’

Kyiv has said Russia was holding Minsk as a “nuclear hostage,” referring to an announcement by Russian President Vladimir Putin on the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons to ally Belarus.

“The Kremlin took Belarus as a nuclear hostage,” the secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council, Oleksiy Danilov, wrote on Twitter, adding that the move was “a step towards the internal destabilization of the country”.

Pentagon: No indication Russia plans to use nuclear weapons

The US Department of Defense has said that there are no indications that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons after Moscow’s announcement to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.

“We have seen reports of Russia’s announcement and will continue to monitor this situation,” the Department of Defense’s press office said in a written statement.

“We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture nor any indications Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon. We remain committed to the collective defense of the NATO alliance.”

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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