Remember when Bill Burns revealed there was real concern Russia was would use a nuclear weapon in 2022?

On November 21st, Russia reportedly fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile at a target in Ukraine and set off a firestorm of concern from world leaders that the escalation could lead to nuclear war.

The threat of nuclear war breaking out has loomed over the world since Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and while Russia's latest provocative move has the world worried, there was another moment in the conflict where the use of a nuclear device was a real possibility. 

On September 7th, 2024 former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director William Burns revealed there was a “genuine risk” that Russia would use a nuclear weapon following Ukraine’s surprise breakthrough in Kharkiv in 2022 according to Financial Times. 

Burns explained what happened while seated next to Richard Moore, the Chief of the Secret Intelligence Service of the UK (also known as MI6), during the Financial Times Weekend Festival, an event that brought the two intelligence leaders together. 

Photo Credit: Screenshot YouTube @FTLiveEvents

The festival was the first time Burns and Moore ever spoke together in public according to BBC News, and the two made several stunning revelations, which included relaying the real concerns the U.S. had that Russia would use a tactical nuclear weapon in late 2022. 

Burns revealed that the sudden breakthrough of Ukrainian forces in the Kharkiv region in September 2022 kicked off a string of diplomatic activity. U.S. leadership worried that the counterattack would push Putin to use extreme measures, the Financial Times reported.

“There was a moment in the fall of 2022 when I think there was a genuine risk of a potential use of tactical nuclear weapons,” Burns explained. 

“The president sent me to talk to our Russian counterpart, Sergei Naryshkin, at the end of 2022 to make very clear what the consequences of that kind of escalation would be, and we’ve continued to be very direct about that,” Burns continued. 

“I don’t think we can afford to be intimidated by that sabre rattling or bullying [but] we’ve got to be mindful of it,” Burns added. However, it was also clear from his comments that the threat of Russia potentially using a nuclear weapon at that time was real.

Burns met Naryshkin in Ankara, Turkey in November 2022 in what the Financial Times reported was thought to be the first in-person meeting between the two intelligence chiefs after Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine. 

At the time, the White House issued a statement about the high-level diplomatic meeting, noting Burns was “conveying a message on the consequences of the use of nuclear weapons by Russia and the risks of escalation to strategic stability."

A report from Time magazine in November 2022 referenced the White House statement and also reported that on the same day, President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping issued a joint statement noting that nuclear weapons should never be used.  

“The two leaders exchanged views on key regional and global challenges. President Biden raised Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine and Russia’s irresponsible threats of nuclear use,” the statement read according to the White House.

“President Biden and President Xi reiterated their agreement that a nuclear war should never be fought and can never be won and underscored their opposition to the use or threat of use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine,” the statement continued.

G20 leaders in attendance at the Bali 2022 summit also issued a statement against the use of nuclear weapons on November 15th-16th, which in retrospect revealed the real concerns world leaders had at that moment in the conflict.

“The use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is inadmissible,” the G20 statement read. “The peaceful resolution of conflicts, efforts to address crises, as well as diplomacy and dialogue, are vital. Today’s era must not be of war.” 

Two years on from Ukraine's counter-offensive in Kharkiv in 2022, worries that a nuclear weapon could be used by Russia remain, and a new Ukrainian offensive into Russian territory in Kursk has only incensed the concern among some. 

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