Vladimir Putin may be willing to risk another world war, Nikita Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter said after the Russian leader joked about the possibility of nuclear Armageddon during a diatribe against the West.
Putin’s ‘grandiose rhetoric’ about a ‘new world order’ and ‘decade of revolution,’ according to Nina Khrushcheva, a professor of international relations at New York’s The New School, suggests he is contemplating a global confrontation.
Khrushcheva, who is presently in Russia, also cautioned that the Russians are hoarding radiation tablets and “preparing for something awful” because nobody knows what Putin would do next.
Putin was asked to reassure an audience at the Valdai Discussion Club that the world is not on the edge of nuclear Armageddon last night in Moscow, and he opted to respond with a lengthy pause.
Putin reacted with a chuckle when host Fyodor Lukyanov noted that his quiet was ‘alarming’: ‘I did that on purpose so you would be on guard. The desired result has been attained.
Putin laid out his foreign policy objectives in his annual address to the Valdai Club, declaring that the Western international system is collapsing and that the moment has come to construct a’multipolar world order’ in which Moscow has a larger voice.
Putin accused western leaders of fueling the fires of war in Ukraine and Taiwan, as well as causing an energy crisis and strangling global food markets, all of which have been criticized.
Putin also spoke at length about nuclear weapons, threatening the West on multiple occasions with a nuclear strike, causing concern that he may also deploy one in Ukraine.
The Russian dictator denied that he had any plans to unleash a nuclear weapon against his neighbor, stating that there is “no political or military rationale” for such a move.
However, he also referred to Russia’s nuclear doctrine, which permits their use if the country is threatened, which, according to the Kremlin, now includes occupied regions of Ukraine.
Host Lukyanov noted at one point that Friday marks the 60th anniversary of the conclusion of the Cuban Missile Crisis, which was resolved when Nikita Khrushchev decided to remove Soviet nuclear weapons from Cuba.
Putin responded, “No,” when asked if he could envision himself in Khrushchev’s position if the situation were to recur.
Putin said simply, “I cannot see myself in the place of Khrushchev,” when asked to clarify whether this implies there will be no nuclear standoff or whether he would have refused to back down.
Nina Khrushcheva stated on BBC Radio 4 that Putin “obviously does not think in the same terms” as her great-grandfather.
When Khrushchev was expelled, one of the claims was that he removed Cuba’s missiles, which made the Soviet Union appear weak.
Khrushchev remarked, “What, I was meant to spark a global war?”
Putin obviously does not think in such terms. He believes “it is our way” and the way I determine it will be, and we will not back down.
‘I won’t put words in his mouth – he didn’t say ‘else there would be a world war’ – but it does appear… that he may be prepared for war rather than modifying his political behavior.’
When asked about the present climate in Russia, where she works, Khrushcheva stated that paranoia regarding Putin’s actions is “palpable.”
She stated, “Society is becoming more desperate.” It is locked in despair – not fear, but despair – and we do not know what will occur or what tomorrow will bring.
“During the previous month of nuclear discourse, it is reported that sales of radiation pills increased by seventy percent,” People are preparing for a catastrophic event.
As the war in Ukraine enters its ninth month with Kyiv in the lead and Putin failing to achieve his objectives, fears of a nuclear escalation have been growing.
According to Vladimir, the formal objective of the assault remains the ‘liberation’ of the eastern Donbas region, but in reality his men have halted advancing practically everywhere save in the Donetsk town of Bakhmut.
In the meantime, they are being pushed back in the northern region of Kharkiv and the southern region of Kherson, which Putin has declared to be part of Russia.
After stating that he would use “all available means” to defend the area, this has generated concerns that he may employ nuclear weapons.
In the meantime, Moscow has asserted that Ukraine is preparing to detonate a so-called ‘dirty bomb’ on its territory, which is a conventional explosion mixed with radioactive material for the purpose of contamination.
At Kyiv’s insistence, the UN’s atomic watchdog has been dispatched to two areas of Ukraine where Putin claims the bomb is being prepared, while President Zelensky and his allies deny the allegations.
Instead, they assert that Russia may be preparing the ground to escalate the fight using one of its own nuclear weapons as a pretext.
Joe Biden answered last night when asked about Putin’s statement that he would never deploy nuclear weapons in Ukraine: ‘Why does he keep talking about it?
Why is he discussing the capability to employ tactical nuclear weapons? The manner in which he has addressed this situation has been extremely risky, and he need to leave immediately.
“He can end all of this by leaving Ukraine,”