Senior Policy Director John Erath spoke with Global News about Russia’s continued nuclear threats.
Putin may also be seeking to deter Ukraine from striking within Russia because it would puncture the “illusion of safety” he has created for the Russian people, said John Erath, a senior director at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation in Washington.
“For most Russians, the war does not affect them,” he told Global News in an interview.
An attack on Russian infrastructure “could have some effect on the Russian population’s willingness to continue to send their brothers off to die for — it’s not very clear what.”
…
Erath said the continued threat of nuclear weapons makes it all the more critical to ensure Ukraine’s victory in the war. That includes ensuring Russia isn’t seen as having successfully used those threats to hold onto seized Ukrainian territory through any kind of negotiated peace agreement.
“That sets a very disturbing precedent of nuclear weapons becoming normalized as a tool of diplomacy,” he said.
“What is (North Korean leader) Kim Jong Un going to think about that? How is that going to affect his policy? How might China approach a Taiwan crisis? Will Iran decide to remain non-nuclear now that they have pretty much all capabilities they need to build such weapons?” Read more
