On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a revised nuclear doctrine, declaring that any attack on Russia backed by a nuclear-armed country could trigger a nuclear response. This new policy was signed on the 1,000th day of the Ukraine war, just one day after President Biden authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied longer-range missiles to target Russia.
The updated doctrine also indicates that Russia might use nuclear weapons in response to aggression against its ally, Belarus, according to The Associated Press. While the doctrine doesn’t guarantee a nuclear response, it highlights the “uncertainty of scale, time, and place” for the potential use of nuclear deterrence as key deterrence principles.
When asked if the revision was a reaction to Biden’s decision, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that the doctrine was published “in a timely manner” and explained that Putin had instructed the government to update it earlier this year to reflect “the current situation.” Putin led a meeting in September to discuss these revisions.
The revised doctrine now formally states that an attack on Russia by a non-nuclear power, with the involvement or backing of a nuclear power, will be considered a “joint attack on the Russian Federation.” It also outlines a wider set of scenarios where nuclear weapons could be deployed, including in response to air attacks involving ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, aircraft, drones, or other flying vehicles.
