Russia has warned NATO it would be ready to resort to nuclear weapons if the Western alliance attempted to cut off Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave that borders the Baltic Sea.
The document said this included the possibility “of Russian strikes against decision-making centres in the alliance’s member states right from the outset of the conflict”.
“We have sent a response, noting that NATO is a defensive Alliance and none of our activities or exercises pose a risk to any part of Russia. We strongly denounce the threat of force, including any irresponsible nuclear rhetoric. So this is serious.
“Russia will be ready to use the entire arsenal of forces and capabilities at its disposal, including nuclear weapons, in order to defend its territory should NATO countries undertake any attempt aimed at isolating the Kaliningrad Region from the rest of the country,” said the text, classed as a “non-paper” — diplomatic jargon for an informal document. The statements said Russia had no intention of attacking NATO countries but warned that any aggression against Kaliningrad — a heavily militarised Russian territory that is sandwiched between Poland and Lithuania — would be met with the strongest possible response. We call on Russia to end its unprovoked war in Ukraine,” she said. A senior European defence official said: “[This is the] first time since the Cold War that Russia is threatening us like this. A NATO diplomat said: “I would say that the Russian letter is only another Russian attempt to intimidate Europeans, and that the response by NATO is firm and responsible. [It] reaffirms that we will not be dissuaded from supporting Ukraine.”
