General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsI could see Putin deploying one tactical nuke
just so he could show he didn't back down, but more importantly to him, to cement his place in history as the first since the end of WW2 to do so.
The question is: how do we respond? I seriously doubt we would retaliate in kind, but rather would use conventional weapons and more economic tools. I just don't see him actually provoking a full-fledged nuclear exchange.
To be clear, he and his country will pay dearly, but I don't see it to be from nuclear retaliation. And I doubt he'd try a second time--,or rather, I doubt he'd get the opportunity.
Just mho.
eShirl
(18,478 posts)doesn't matter how
Srkdqltr
(6,226 posts)Irish_Dem
(46,472 posts)Sad to say.
He has to double down on the loss of face from his failed initial invasion.
And he is hell bent on showing the world he is a formidable 21st century superpower.
Metaphorical
(1,601 posts)I can see him authorizing it.
I don't think that the military would obey, and would like mutiny if he did that.
MarineCombatEngineer
(12,249 posts)and would the special unit of the FSB release any of the warheads?
We've seen dissent inside the FSB opposing this illegal war.
Beetwasher.
(2,967 posts)Quicker than anyone can imagine. Not with nukes, but with the immediate full force of NATO directed squarely at Russian Leadership with every imaginable tool we've got.
Nevilledog
(50,997 posts)Chainfire
(17,464 posts)AlexSFCA
(6,137 posts)Gore1FL
(21,095 posts)njhoneybadger
(3,910 posts)That's what he has been doing for the last 6 or 7 years. I'm not worried about a nuke I'm worried about him destroying America through our political system. And I also think he wants to make NATO look impotent.
Gore1FL
(21,095 posts)His involvement in Western elections is to allow his dream of a rebirthed USSR.
njhoneybadger
(3,910 posts)Putin is still playing a long game.
Algernon Moncrieff
(5,781 posts)All things being equal, Trump getting reelected in '24 was looking like strong possibility. But a strange disconnect has taken place. Americans- blue and red alike - have lined up behind Ukraine. While the MAGAs will try to explain Trump's support away, the fact remains that he sided with the man Americans view as a villan. Trump may have irretrievably stumbled here. Not only will Dems remind voters of this, but it may finally give equally disgusting Republicans like DeSantis and Ricketts the opening they need to primary Trump. And if we end up involved, look for Americans to rally behind Biden. Wars frequently divide our country - the exception being when we perceive genuine provocation. The main division in WW II was the wisdom of Germany-first (average Americans didn't know about jets or A bombs in '42).
AntiFascist
(12,792 posts)produced a quite shocking mushroom cloud. Just saying...
Gore1FL
(21,095 posts)JHB
(37,153 posts)It's just the physics of how those work.
MarineCombatEngineer
(12,249 posts)along with many other munitions.
AntiFascist
(12,792 posts)peggysue2
(10,819 posts)The moderator suggested the same thing--that he might use a tactical nuke in a low populated area just to show he can and would, a grim reminder of what he's willing to risk.
He's not playing chess; he's playing poker.
Zeitghost
(3,844 posts)But it is a possibility. Especially since Ukraine was forced into giving up their nukes at the end of the Cold War.
Would the US, the UK and other western nuclear powers risk global nuclear war when they had not been directly attacked? I'm not so sure. Mutual Assured Destruction works between nuclear powers, it gets a little more dicey when you involve non-nuclear countries like the Ukraine.
radius777
(3,635 posts)If he uses one nuke there is nothing to prevent him from using more.
NATO would at that point, due to public pressure, and the likelihood of it triggering Article 5, would directly intervene in a non-nuclear fashion to defeat Russia and drive them out of Ukraine.
NATO weaponry and forces are superior to the Russians, and the NATO nations are far wealthier thus can replenish the weapons, munitions and troops far faster. NATO has a combined $42 trillion gdp with 1 billion citizens compared to Russia's $2 trillion gdp and 144 million citizens.
Fiendish Thingy
(15,548 posts)Or NATO launches a full counter strike.
Remember, Milley called his Chinese counterpart during January 6 to assure him the US nuclear arsenal was under control and there would be no surprises.
The Russian generals would have to decide if their loyalty was with Putin or with Russia, and how many of their friends and family would they be willing to sacrifice.
milestogo
(16,829 posts)He's a raving lunatic.