Why is Russia changing its nuclear doctrine amid the Ukraine war?

Sarah Shamim

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Russia is amending its doctrine on the use of nuclear weapons as a response to perceived Western involvement in the Ukraine war, its Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted as saying on Sunday.

The comments came at a time when Russia is battling an incursion into its Kursk region by Ukrainian troops and amid growing attacks on Russian territory by Kyiv using Western weapons.

So what exactly is Russia’s nuclear doctrine, how big is its arsenal, what might change, and are others changing their policies too?

What is Russia’s nuclear doctrine?

• Russian President Vladimir Putin last signed off on the country’s nuclear doctrine in June 2020. The six-page doctrine is formally called the Basic Principles of State Policy on Nuclear Deterrence.
• It says Russia considers nuclear weapons to be exclusively a means of deterrence.
• The doctrine deems the use of nuclear weapons an “extreme and compelled measure”.