NATO and Russia’s military alike staged planned annual nuclear exercises Wednesday as the Russian president repeated the unfounded claim that Ukraine plans to set off a radioactive “dirty bomb.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin remotely observed Russia’s annual exercise, called “Grom” or “Thunder,” which uses test launches to put Moscow’s nuclear forces through their paces, in a show of force designed to deter and intimidate foes.
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu reported to Putin that the drills were intended to simulate a “massive nuclear strike” by Russia in retaliation for a nuclear attack on Russia.
The Kremlin said in a statement that all tasks set for the exercise were fulfilled and all of the missiles that were test-fired reached their designated targets.
Potential challenge to U.S., allies
The Pentagon said a day earlier that Russia had notified it of its intention to carry out the exercises at a time when NATO is rehearsing its own use of U.S. nuclear bombs based in Europe in its annual “Steadfast Noon” war games.
The drills present a potential challenge to the United States and its allies after Putin’s nuclear sabre-rattling during its invasion of Ukraine, though Western officials have expressed confidence in their ability to discern the difference between a Russian drill and any move by Putin to make good on his threats.
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is holding its own annual nuclear drills, involving U.S. B-52 bombers, 14 countries and up to 60 aircraft.
The Russian exercise comes amid Moscow’s warnings of a purported Ukrainian plot to detonate a radioactive device in a false flag attack to blame Russia, a claim strongly rejected by Ukraine and its allies.
Russia has continued banging that drum this week, including comments from Shoigu and Putin and a message given behind closed doors to the United Nations Security Council.
Shoigu called his counterparts from India and China to convey Moscow’s concern about the purported Ukrainian plan, following a series of calls earlier in the week with NATO defence ministers.
Putin warns of ‘so-called dirty bomb’
Putin spoke of the alleged threat on Wednesday, telling a meeting of intelligence officials from the CIS group of ex-Soviet countries that the West was “pumping” Ukraine with heavy weapons, adding, “There are also plans to use a so-called dirty bomb for provocations.” It was the first time Putin himself made the dirty bomb allegation.
A dirty bomb uses explosives to scatter radioactive waste in an effort to sow terror. Such weapons don’t have the devastating destruction of a nuclear explosion but could expose broad areas to radioactive contamination that could last for years.
Western allies have dismissed as absurd the idea that Ukraine would contaminate its own land with toxic waste when Russia is on its back foot on the battlefield. Russia has provided no proof of the allegation.
Britain’s deputy UN ambassador, James Kariuki, called the allegations “pure Russian misinformation of the kind we’ve seen many times before.”
Western officials have expressed fear the warning looks designed to serve as the justification for some kind of Russian battlefield escalation at a time when Ukrainian forces are advancing inside Russian-occupied Kherson province.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday that the 30-nation military organization “will not be intimidated or deterred from supporting Ukraine’s right to self-defence for as long as it takes.”
Ukraine is denying claims from Russia that it is about to launch a radioactive ‘dirty bomb’ attack, a claim Western allies have also dismissed. United Nations inspectors will be heading to the country at Kyiv’s request to debunk the accusation.
Since Russian forces suffered major defeats in Ukraine in September, Putin has doubled down, calling up hundreds of thousands of reservists, announcing the annexation of occupied territory and engaging in threats.
U.S. President Joe Biden warned Moscow on Tuesday that any use of a nuclear weapons by Russia would be an “incredibly serious mistake.”
Slovenia’s government said Russia has been engaging in a disinformation campaign about the “dirty bombs,” using a 2010 photo from the European Union country’s Agency for Radioactive Waste titled “Ukraine’s capacities to create the dirty bomb.”
Putin claims openness to negotiations
The photo shows bags containing smoke detectors bearing inscriptions in Slovenian reading “radioaktivno,” or radioactive. The Slovenian government says the detectors contain a radioactive source but isn’t one of those listed below the photo in the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry release. Slovenia’s government said on Twitter that its radioactive waste is stored safely and is not used for dirty bombs.
While continuing to issue unsubstantiated claims, Putin is still sending signals that he’s open to negotiations with Kyiv. The latest message came via Umaro Mokhtar Sissoco Embalo, President of Guinea-Bissau, who visited Kyiv to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“I was in Russia with President Putin, who asked me to forward you what we spoke about, something he thinks would be very important. He wishes and thinks that a direct dialogue should happen between your two countries,” the Guinea-Bissau leader said.
At a news conference, Zelenskyy responded that a prerequisite for talks would be Russia’s recognition of Ukraine’s territory, borders and sovereignty.
The two sides have managed limited co-operation on certain issues, such as the exchange of prisoners of war and repatriation of remains.
Russia hits more than 40 towns
On the ground, Ukrainian officials say Russia has targeted more than 40 towns around Ukraine over the past day, killing at least two more people and sustaining the terror that forces people into air raid shelters each night.
The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said on Wednesday that Russian forces launched five rockets, 30 air strikes and more than 100 multiple-launch rocket system attacks on Ukrainian targets.
A Ukrainian official reported Wednesday that a Russian strike hit a gas station in the city of Dnipro, killing two people, including a pregnant woman. The governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region, Valentyn Reznichenko, said four wounded people were hospitalized.
Mykolaiv, a southern port city near the war’s front line, is among the places where residents have lined up to receive rations of bread and canned food as increases in food prices and losses of income add to the war-time burdens of low-income households in Ukraine.
Several buildings and neighbourhoods were struck in Mykolaiv on Tuesday, though it was still unclear if there were any casualties, according to local authorities.
Missiles continued early Wednesday morning.
‘It’s terrifying’
The sole food distribution point in Mykolaiv allows each person to receive free bread once every three days. Many must walk long distances to collect the essential food items for their family.
“Bread and canned food is all I eat. It’s almost winter already, and it’s terrifying,” Anna Bilousova, 70, said.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin on Wednesday kept the door open for talks on a possible swap involving jailed U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner but reiterated that any such discussions must be kept strictly confidential.
A Russian court on Tuesday rejected Griner’s appeal against her nine-year prison sentence for drug possession. The eight-time all-star centre with the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury and a two-time Olympic gold medallist was convicted Aug. 4 after police said they found vape canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport.