Russian State TV Discusses Nuclear War Prospects

A Russian state TV host and Kremlin propagandists have floated the prospect of a nuclear war breaking out amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Guests on the program New World hosted by Marina Kim, a member of Russia's State Duma, discussed the country's nuclear war prospects; there have been warnings from Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov that the country's nuclear doctrine could be amended due to "the unacceptable and escalatory actions" of the West. Russia's nuclear doctrine lays out the conditions under which it can use such weapons

An excerpt of the broadcast was shared on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday by Julia Davis, the founder of the Russia Media Monitor watchdog group.

"Meanwhile in Russia: prominent figures explained their deranged belief that if Russia starts a nuclear war, it can win it," Davis wrote. "They also described misusing funds allocated for nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament to build up Russia's nuclear capabilities."

The program's first guest was Alexander Dugin, an influential ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who told host Kim that Russia is "redefining its place in the world."

"Our country only has one path, either to be great or not to exist. Russia will either be great, or it will not exist. Everything is at stake," Dugin said.

The program cut to a clip of Putin at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 7, saying that his country's nuclear doctrine is "a living instrument" that can be changed.

Russia is "carefully watching what is happening in the world around us and do not exclude making some changes to this doctrine," Putin said.

"This is also related to the testing of nuclear weapons," the Russian president added.

Dugin, who last year said talk of using nuclear weapons in Russia's war in Ukraine is "irresponsible," told Kim that he believes the West is "a pathologically sick civilization that pitted itself against the rest of the world" and is "the source of the problem."

"In order to defend against it and not be helpless, in face of this maniacal civilization, which is aggressive, imperialist and colonial, nuclear weapons are needed for containment," said Dugin.

Dugin, 62, has been credited with being a key architect of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. His daughter, political activist Darya Dugina, was killed in a car-bomb attack in August 2022.

"What the president said about victory is very important," Dugin added. "Russia has no chance without victory over the aggression of the hegemony, over global liberalism. It's not about a truce or a ceasefire, but about victory."

Kim also spoke with Mikhail Kovalchuk, who is a physicist and member of an elite group close to Putin.

Kovalchuk said he believes nuclear weapons are "the most important thing in this world, along with their means of delivery."

"[The West is] not afraid of China, because we are the only ones who can turn America into radioactive nuclear ashes," Kovalchuk said.

The latest nuclear rhetoric comes as Moscow's relations with Washington hit a new low over Ukraine's reported use of American-supplied weapons against Russian territory.

Facing growing pressure from Ukraine and its NATO allies, the U.S. on May 30 granted Ukraine permission to use some American-supplied weapons to strike limited targets in Russia.

Kyiv may use some weapons against Russian territory bordering northeast Ukraine for the purpose of defending its Kharkiv region, but the use of long-range missiles such as ATACMS is still prohibited, a U.S. official told Newsweek.

Putin has said since September 2022 that Russia would be prepared to use nuclear weapons to defend its "territorial integrity."

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