Free Republic

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his troops to hold a large-scale exercise of the Kremlin’s nuclear forces on Tuesday, including practice missile launches, as tensions boil over the Ukraine war. Putin oversaw the drills in a video call with military leaders, as Russian soldiers simulated a nuclear attack using ballistic and cruise missiles. “Taking into account growing geopolitical tensions and emerging new threats and risks, it’s important for us to have modern strategic forces that are always ready for combat,” the Russian president said. Despite the show of force, Putin claimed his nation’s nuclear arsenal would only be deployed under...

Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters Thursday that allowing Ukraine to use long-range missiles to strike inside Russia would be seen by Moscow as NATO’s direct entry into the war. “This will mean that NATO countries – the United States and European countries – are at war with Russia. And if this is the case, then, bearing in mind the change in the essence of the conflict, we will make appropriate decisions in response to the threats that will be posed to us,” he said. According to the Russian president, “the Ukrainian army is not capable of using cutting-edge high-precision...