Biden: Putin “is not kidding” about the use of nuclear weapons

U.S. President Joe Biden said the risk of nuclear “Armageddon” is at its highest level since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.

Biden’s comments came amid claims by Russian officials that tactical nuclear weapons could be used after massive setbacks in the eight-month-long invasion of Ukraine.

Speaking at a fundraising event, Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin is someone he knows “pretty well,” and the Russian leader “is not kidding when he talks about using tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons.”

“We haven’t faced the prospect of Armageddon since U.S. President John Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis,” he added.

He made it clear that Putin’s threats were real, “because his military, you might say, has not been as effective” as he had hoped.

U.S. officials have been warning for months about the prospect of Russia using weapons of mass destruction in Ukraine, which has suffered a series of strategic defeats on the battlefield.

But Biden’s words were the harshest warning about nuclear betting coming from the U.S. government.

Meanwhile, as recently as this week, U.S. officials said they saw no changes in Russia’s nuclear forces that would require changes in the level of readiness of U.S. nuclear forces.

“We see no reason to adjust the configuration of our own nuclear forces. Nor do we see any indication that Russia is preparing to use nuclear weapons anytime soon,” said White House press secretary Karin Jean-Pierre.

According to experts, the 13-day standoff in 1962, which began after the U.S. discovered that the Soviet Union had secretly deployed nuclear weapons in Cuba, was the point where the world came closest to nuclear annihilation.

Biden also challenged Russia’s nuclear doctrine, warning that the use of low-yield tactical nuclear weapons could quickly spiral out of control and lead to global destruction.

“I don’t think there’s such a thing as being able to easily use tactical weapons and not end up in Armageddon,” Biden said.

Speaking to Democratic donors, Biden said he is still trying to figure out how Putin plans to evade responsibility in Ukraine.

“Where will he find a way out? – Biden asked. – Where is the situation in which not only will he not lose face, but he won’t lose significant power in Russia?”

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said last week that the U.S. had made clear to Russia what the consequences of using nuclear weapons in Ukraine would be.

“This is something that we are attuned to, that we take very seriously, and that we are communicating directly with Russia about – including what decisive action the United States will take if Moscow goes down this grim path,” Sullivan said.