Russia confirmed on Tuesday that its military test-fired missiles over distances of thousands of miles in a bid to stimulate a massive nuclear response to an enemy first strike.
President Vladimir Putin said, "Given the growing geopolitical tensions and the emergence of new external threats and risks, it is important to have modern and constantly ready-to-use strategic forces," while announcing the nuclear exercise.
Russia's full nuclear "triad" of ground, sea, and air-launched missiles was involved in the exercise.
Even as Putin said using nuclear weapons would be an "extremely exceptional measure", and assured that Moscow is not going to get involved in a new arms race but will maintain nuclear forces at the level of necessary sufficiency, it is important to look at Russia's nuclear doctrine and capabilities.
“Russia’s military and deterrence doctrine states it would consider using nuclear weapons under conditions including imminent threats from ballistic missiles and other weapons of mass destruction, or massed conventional strikes that constitute an existential threat against the Russian state,” a recently released report, titled 'Nuclear Challenges: The Growing Capabilities of Strategic Competitors and Regional Rivals', by the US Defence Intelligence Agency, reads.
A few weeks ago, Putin had warned that Russia could resort to the use of nuclear weapons in response to a conventional attack that posed a “critical threat to our sovereignty”.
Russia's nuclear capabilities
According to the US report, Russia is about to complete the current round of modernisation of its strategic nuclear forces as this has been among the country's top priorities.
Russia has successfully introduced new intercontinental ballistic missiles, ballistic missile submarines, and long-range air-launched cruise missiles, as per the report.
Russia currently has a stockpile of up to 2,000 nonstrategic nuclear weapons (NSNWs) and the country continues to add new military capabilities to its large stockpile. The NSNWs of Russia include those employable by ships, aircraft, and ground forces.
It is to be noted that NSNWs are not covered by New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START).
START refers to a series of treaties aimed at reducing the number of strategic nuclear weapons possessed by the US and Russia.
“These items (NSNWs) include ASMs, SRBMs, gravity bombs, depth charges for medium-range bombers, tactical bombers, and naval aviation, as well as anti-ship, anti-submarine, and anti-aircraft missiles and torpedoes for surface ships and submarines, and Moscow’s antiballistic missile system,” according to the US report.
In 2021, Russia spent 8.6 billion to upgrade the capacity of its strategic nuclear triad which includes intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM).
Russia, under New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty on 1 September 2022 declared 1,549 warheads on 540 deployed ICBMs, SLBMs, or heavy bombers.
In 2018, Putin confirmed the existence of five nuclear delivery systems—Sarmat ICBM, Avangard HGV, Kinzhal hypersonic missile, Skyfall nuclear-powered missile, and Poseidon nuclear-powered underwater vehicle.