The West Is Misrepresenting What Russian President Putin Said About Using Nuclear Weapons

Address by the President of the Russian Federation  

WNU Editor: This is what the Western media and its leaders are saying ....  

US urges world to tell Russia to stop its nuclear threats -- AP  

Exclusive: NATO chief calls Putin's nuclear threat a 'dangerous' escalation -- Reuters  

With nuclear threat, Putin backs self into a corner on Ukraine -- NBC  

Putin warns West: Threat to resort to nuclear weapons ‘not a bluff’ -- FOX News  

White House says Vladimir Putin's threat is 'irresponsible' -- BBC  

Russia’s nuclear threats ‘totally unacceptable’, says UN chief -- The Guardian 

This is what Russian President Putin said (complete speech is here) .... 

 .... They have even resorted to the nuclear blackmail. I am referring not only to the Western-encouraged shelling of the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, which poses a threat of a nuclear disaster, but also to the statements made by some high-ranking representatives of the leading NATO countries on the possibility and admissibility of using weapons of mass destruction – nuclear weapons – against Russia.

I would like to remind those who make such statements regarding Russia that our country has different types of weapons as well, and some of them are more modern than the weapons NATO countries have. In the event of a threat to the territorial integrity of our country and to defend Russia and our people, we will certainly make use of all weapon systems available to us. This is not a bluff. 

Reuters for example is even claiming that Putin is threatening to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine .... Putin escalates Ukraine war, issues nuclear threat to West (Reuters). The problem is that he never said such a thing. What he said is that if the West should decide to use nuclear weapons against us (i.e. Russia) because the war is not going in their favor, Russia has the capability to respond. 

He certainly did not say that he will use nuclear weapons proactively. A point that has been completely misrepresented by the Western media and its leaders. 

So why did Putin say what he said?

One of the big fears in Russia right now is a nuclear "false flag" incident taking place that will be used as justification by Western powers to directly intervene in Ukraine. And there is merit in this worry. A day before Putin's speech a Ukrainian missile strike damaged a technical water pipe at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Ukraine .... Russia Says Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant Water Pipe Damaged by Shell (Reuters). 

When it comes to the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine I have evolved on this issue. I do not think the Kremlin has any interest to go there, and Putin's warning to the West is that they should not go there either. 

But while I am no longer worried about Russia using tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine in the current situation, I am becoming more and more worried that a dirty bomb attack on a major Russian city (or cities) may occur. Ukraine has the material and capability of building such a weapon, and if the war starts to go bad for Kyiv in 2023, my gut tells me that there will be some who will consider implementing such an operation to force Russia to stop. I am also willing to bet that this is one of the top worries for the Kremlin right now.