With his war going slowly, Vladimir Putin raises the nuclear stakes

AS VLADIMIR PUTIN declared war on Ukraine in the early hours of February 24th, he warned the West to stay out of it. “Whoever tries to hinder us… should know that Russia's response…will lead you to such consequences that you have never encountered in your history,” he said. It was interpreted as a barely veiled threat to use nuclear weapons. On February 27th, several days into his war, and without much to show for the fighting so far, Mr Putin removed the veil entirely.

At a televised meeting with Sergei Shoigu, his defence minister, who looked taken aback, and the chief of the general staff, General Valery Gerasimov, Mr Putin accused the West of “unfriendly economic actions”. He was referring to the heavy sanctions announced in recent days, which threaten to batter Russia’s economy, as well as “aggressive statements” about Russia. “Therefore I order the minister of defence and the chief of the general staff to transfer the deterrence forces…to a special mode of combat duty.” In effect, it suggests that Russian nuclear weapons are moving to higher readiness.