MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia could “theoretically” use nuclear weapons if there was a threat to its territorial integrity or existence, but that it did not need to.
He was speaking at the plenary session of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum.
“Nuclear weapons have been made to ensure our security in the broadest sense of the word and the existence of the Russian state, but we... have no such need (to use them),” Putin said.
Also, Putin confirmed Russia had sent nuclear ammunition to its ally Belarus which borders Ukraine.
“The first nuclear warheads were delivered to the territory of Belarus... This is the first part. But by the end of summer, the end of the year, we will complete the process,” Putin said.
Putin touted Russia’s prospects at the country’s main international economic forum despite heavy international sanctions imposed because of the war in Ukraine.
Putin said at the forum’s plenary session, “We haven’t turned onto the self-isolation path. Quite the opposite — we have widened contacts with reliable and responsible partners in the countries and regions that serve as the engine, the drivers of the world’s economy today. I’d like to reiterate: These are the markets of the future; everyone clearly understands it.”
Officials did not provide a list of foreign businesses attending, but the program for the more than 100 panel discussions showed a marked majority of speakers hailing from Russia.
While one of the panel sessions listed in the program touted Russia as a “global tech hub,” descriptions of others tacitly admitted Moscow’s growing economic isolation since its troops moved into Ukraine last February.
Putin also vehemently defended Russia’s sending troops into Ukraine and repeated his claims that the Ukrainian government is a neo-Nazi regime, despite President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Jewish roots.
“My Jewish friends say that Zelensky is not a Jew, but a shame to the Jewish people,” Putin said.
