On numerous occasions since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, Russia has threatened the use of nuclear weapons against EU and NATO targets (in an otherwise conventional conflict) if western nations become more involved.
Those threats took on significantly different tone this week following a Ukraine security assistance conference in Paris where French President Emmanuel Macron suggested EU and NATO countries should not rule out deploying ground troops in Ukraine.
“We are convinced that the defeat of Russia is indispensable to security and stability in Europe. There’s no consensus today to send in an official, endorsed manner of troops on the ground. But in terms of dynamics, nothing can be ruled out. “We will do everything that we must so that Russia does not win.”
According to Polish President Andrzej Duda, who was one of 22 European leaders present at the meeting:
"The most heated discussion was about whether to send troops to Ukraine and that “there was no agreement on the matter”.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico also commented on the sidelines, saying that several NATO and European Union members were considering sending soldiers to Ukraine on a bilateral basis:
“I can confirm there are countries that are prepared to send their own troops to Ukraine, there are countries that say never, among which Slovakia belongs, and there are countries that say this proposal needs to be considered.
In response, a visibly angry Vladimir Putin used his annual State of the Nation address on Thursday to blast Macron and the West, saying “potential aggressors will face far graver consequences” if they enter Russian territory.
"They are preparing to strike our territory and using the best possible forces most effective forces to do so.
But we remember the fate of those who tried to invade our territory and of course their fate will be much more tragic than anything that we could face.
They have to understand that we also have weapons. Weapons that can defeat them on their own territory and of course all this is very dangerous because it could actually trigger the use of nuclear weapons. Do they not understand that?
These people are people who have not been through arduous experiences. They’ve forgotten about it, but we did through the Caucasian war, for example, and now in the conflict in Ukraine."
Putin, who was speaking ahead of a March 15-17 presidential election when he is certain to be re-elected for another six-year term, rejected Western leaders’ statements about the threat of a Russian attack on NATO allies in Europe as “ravings,” and again dismissed Washington’s claim that Moscow was pondering the deployment of space-based nuclear weapons.
Speaking at a Republican-led House Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned that Putin will not stop if Ukraine falls and Russia wins the war. This would mean NATO will almost certainly be drawn into conflict if Kyiv is defeated by Moscow's forces.
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