Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation

Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation

  • Policy Issues
    • Fact Sheets
    • Countries
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Non-Proliferation
    • Nuclear Security
    • Biological & Chemical Weapons
    • Defense Spending
    • Missile Defense
    • No First Use
  • Nukes of Hazard
    • Podcast
    • Blog
    • Videos
  • Join Us
  • Press
  • About
    • Staff
    • Boards & Experts
    • Jobs & Internships
    • Financials and Annual Reports
    • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Search
You are here: Home / Press Room / Center in the News / Putin’s nuclear saber rattling

March 26, 2022

Putin’s nuclear saber rattling

Greg Koblentz, member of the Scientists Working Group on Chemical and Biological Threats, spoke to the Spanish-language news site El Periódico about the potential for Russian use of weapons of mass destruction in Ukraine.

Gregory Koblentz, a professor at George Mason University, where he directs the Biodefense Program, estimates the risk of Moscow using nuclear weapons in this conflict “extremely low” and sees the events in Ukraine “far from the conditions that would make a plausible option or possible for Putin.” In a telephone interview, he opines that the Kremlin is making “nuclear saber rattling” for several reasons: as “an implicit threat that they will not tolerate a certain level of military intervention in the conflict” and as “national political propaganda.” Putin would seek, according to him, “to help reassure its citizens that Russia remains a great power because they have nuclear weapons and it is a strong state.”

Koblentz also thinks that “the differences between small and large atomic weapons are not important in this context” and assures that “the physical consequences of a smaller nuclear weapon would be minor, but the political and diplomatic implications would be equally monumental.” It is also the factor why he does not see the possibility of the Kremlin using chemical or biological weapons as a great threat at this time. “It would be counterproductive for them,” he says, although he does see the possibility of a “false flag operation” being carried out, as intelligence agencies and governments of various countries have warned. Read more

 

Posted in: Biological and Chemical Weapons, Center in the News, Nuclear Weapons, Press & In the News on Nuclear Weapons, Press & In the News on Russia, Press Room, Russia, Ukraine

Tweets by Nukes of Hazard

Recent Posts

  • No, We are not Going to War February 1, 2023
  • US says Russia is violating key nuclear arms control agreement January 31, 2023
  • What’s in a Name? January 25, 2023
  • ‘ARMS CONTROL MATTERS’: STATEMENT ON SETTING THE DOOMSDAY CLOCK TO 90 SECONDS TIL MIDNIGHT January 24, 2023
  • Putin’s Military Strategy Ignores Key Principles of War: Ukraine Adviser January 13, 2023
Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation

820 1st Street NE, Suite LL-180
Washington, D.C. 20002
Phone: 202.546.0795

Issues

  • Fact Sheets
  • Countries
  • Nuclear Weapons
  • Non-Proliferation
  • Nuclear Security
  • Defense Spending
  • Biological and Chemical Weapons
  • Missile Defense
  • No First Use

Countries

  • China
  • France
  • India and Pakistan
  • Iran
  • Israel
  • North Korea
  • Russia
  • United Kingdom

Explore

  • Nukes of Hazard blog
  • Nukes of Hazard podcast
  • Nukes of Hazard videos
  • Front and Center
  • Fact Sheets

About

  • About
  • Meet the Staff
  • Boards & Experts
  • Press
  • Jobs & Internships
  • Financials and Annual Reports
  • Contact Us
  • Council for a Livable World
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Facebook

© 2023 Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation
Privacy Policy

Charity Navigator GuideStar Seal of Transparency