Russian President Vladimir Putin has significantly increased his country's stockpile of deployed nuclear warheads, reaching a nine-year high, while simultaneously warning NATO countries that the deployment of troops to Ukraine would constitute a declaration of war.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Russia increased its deployed nuclear warheads by 78 over the past year, bringing the total to 1,796. This marks the highest number since 2017, with increases occurring annually since the onset of the conflict in Ukraine in 2022.
In contrast, the United States reported no increase in its nuclear warhead deployment, while Britain and France maintained their existing numbers at 170 and 280, respectively. Dmitry Medvedev, a former Russian president and current member of Russia's Security Council, issued a separate warning, suggesting that Putin could employ nuclear weapons against Lithuania, a NATO state, potentially transforming it into "scorched earth" and removing it from the world map.
Speaking at the BRICS summit in New Delhi, Putin stated, "Now they [the West] are talking about how they are thinking about bringing troops to the territory of Ukraine. This means war with Russia." Despite these escalatory remarks, Putin has also asserted that Russia poses no threat to NATO allies in Europe and has no intention of invading or threatening existing NATO states.
"There is no such threat, and there has never been," Putin said. "We are not threatening European countries, nor are we going to threaten them. Why would we? No one seems to even consider that we have no grounds for any conflict with Europe."
Medvedev's comments specifically addressed the potential for Lithuania to amend its constitution to allow for the deployment of nuclear weapons. He suggested that such a move would result in a "global catastrophe, planetary" and that Western countries would not intervene to defend Lithuania, leading to its "disappearance from the world map."
These nuclear threats coincide with ongoing military actions in Ukraine. Russia conducted overnight strikes in Odesa, injuring 16 civilians, including a five-month-old baby, and destroying residential buildings. In Kryvyi Rih, one person was killed and another went missing due to a Russian ballistic missile attack. Zaporizhzhia also reported civilian casualties, with a 64-year-old woman and a 37-year-old man killed.
Ukraine has responded with drone attacks targeting Russian military infrastructure. Ukrainian drones reportedly struck a major Russian air force base and military airfield in Taganrog, causing fires. A plant servicing military aircraft, including Russia's A-50 airborne early warning and control aircraft, was among the targets. Additionally, Ukrainian drones attacked the military-linked KuibyshevAzot chemical plant in Tolyatti.
Britain's Chief of Defence Staff, Sir Richard Knighton, stated that Russia's war in Ukraine has resulted in approximately half a million Russian deaths and one million wounded, figures exceeding the UK's total losses in World War II.