Russia's nukes and why Putin scares world leaders so much

The evolution of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has brought back the fear of nuclear war and with just cause. Despite the signing of the Non-Proliferation Treaty, the world is still far from a situation of total disarmament.

Many countries have a considerable number of nuclear weapons in their arsenals. In recent years, world peace has been guaranteed by the simple fact that none of them have been used.

According to data from the Federation of American Scientists, in 2022, there are about 12,700 nuclear warheads worldwide.

Nine nations own these weapons: Russia, United States, France, United Kingdom, Israel, Pakistan, India, China, and North Korea.

The two countries that have the most nuclear weapons are Russia and the United States. Russia is believed to have 5,977 nuclear warheads and the United States 5,428: together, the two superpowers have about 93% of the world's nuclear weapons.

Photo: Federation of American Scientists

These are huge numbers, especially if we compare the amount of nukes Russia has with those of other NATO countries. Putin, in fact, has more nuclear warheads available to him than all the NATO countries put together.

Of the 5,977 Russian nuclear warheads, however, 1,500 are obsolete and ready for decommissioning.

According to the Federation of American Scientists, there are still 1,588 nukes in Russia that are ready to be used on a moments notice - on Vladimir Putin's command.

The United States has a good idea of how many strategic nuclear weapons are in Russia's arsenal because both Washington and Moscow must disclose this information under the terms of New START, the last remaining arms control treaty.

According to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, the Russian arsenal includes a total of 2.565 strategic warheads. Strategic nuclear weapons are the most destructive of the two kinds of nuclear weapons.

However, Moscow also has a large number of tactical nuclear weapons, with less destructive potential compared to strategic ones (up to 50 kilotons) and with a shorter range.

The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists states that Russia has 1,912 non-strategic warheads which are being held in reserve.

Since the war started in Ukraine in February, there has been talk of the "nuclear triad" in the media. According to Britannica Academic, "both the United States and Russia have had the strongest and longest-living triads."

A nuclear triad is a military structure that includes land-launched atomic missiles, submarines armed with nukes, and aircraft armed with nuclear missiles and bombs. This approach helps to ensure the opponent cannot easily destroy all of a nation's nuclear weapons in one attack.

Recently, as part of the analysis of the possible sabotage of the Nord Stream, one of Russia's submarines with nuclear weapons was mentioned: the K-329 Belgorod. (Pictured here at the top.)

Photos: screenshot, Youtube, Pravda Report

Although there is no evidence of its implication in the Nord Stream incident, this submarine still exists and represents one of the most potent weapons Russia could deploy in a war.

Photo: YouTube

K-329 Belgorod is a huge nuclear-powered submarine, 603 feet (184 meters) long and nearly 50 feet (15 meters) wide, with the ability to search, explore and rescue at great depths.

One of the particular tasks of this submarine is the transportation and firing of the Poseidon missile drone and the Klavesin-class remotely controlled mini-submarines.

Combined with the anechoic coverings with which the K-329 Belgorod is equipped, which allows it to create an acoustic screen, making it difficult to detect, the Belgorod is one terrifying weapon.

Codenamed "Status-6", the Poseidon is a 78 feet long (24 meters), nuclear-powered crewless submarine vehicle equipped with two-megaton Cobalt-60 nuclear warheads.

Photo: Youtube Screenshot, World's Tech Official

If detonated near a coast, this nuclear torpedo would cause a "radioactive tsunami," with waves up to 1640 feet (500 meters) high, which would also inflict damage inland and, according to simulations by Russian state TV, would demolish entire countries, such as the UK.

Photo: Wikimedia commons

But the Belgorod is not the only Russian weapon that keeps the West on high alert: to keep it company, there are intercontinental ballistic missiles, including the Sarmat.

Photo: By Mil.ru, Wikimedia commons

The Sarmat is considered the flagship of the new Russian military programs. According to Al Jazeera, Putin once declared it a weapon that "has no equal" in the world and is "capable of evading any missile defense system." All while carrying 15 nuclear warheads along a flight path up to 11,184 miles (18,000 kilometers).

Whether or not Russia will resort to a nuclear weapons or it is only a threat remains to be seen. For example, newspapers such as the New York Times recognize the war potential of the tactical nuclear weapons available to Moscow.

One must also consider another element: the high long-term cost that could discourage the use of such weapons. In addition, such a drastic measure would surely result in a loss of the few allies Putin has left.

Other newspapers, such as The Guardian, have questioned which target Moscow might try to hit. One of the hypotheses that most convince analysts is that if Putin decided to use nuclear arms, it would be with a tactical nuclear weapon limited to the Ukrainian territory, towards a strategic base, or a specific unit of the Ukrainian army.

In this case, NATO, in theory, could not intervene directly to defend Ukraine by attacking Russian territory. Nor could NATO intervene by using either conventional or nuclear weapons since, despite Zelensky's repeated requests, Ukraine is not a part of the Alliance. If NATO intervened, then the scale of the conflict would most likely become global.

In the aftermath of the referendum on the annexation of the four Ukrainian territories to Russia, in a press conference, Jens Stoltenberg (pictured), NATO secretary, clarified the Alliance's position regarding "nuclear blackmail." Stoltenberg called the Russian leader's "nuclear rhetoric" dangerous, warning that "NATO is vigilant, monitors what Russia's military forces do."

The national security advisor of the United States, Jake Sullivan, made the country's stance on Putin's nuclear threats clear during a press conference at the White House on September 30, 2022. Sullivan told reporters that the United States was taking the risk very seriously and communicating directly with Russia about the issue, including about decisive responses the United States would take if Moscow went down "that dark road."