The US has declared that it is treating Russian President Vladimir Putin's threats to use nuclear weapons to defend land it will soon claim in Ukraine "seriously."
John Kirby, a spokesman for the US Department of Defense, claimed that while the US was not altering its "strategic deterrent posture" against Russia, Putin had acted irresponsibly in stating that his nation would use all available means to defend its borders.
On September 21, Putin issued a warning as four Ukrainian districts that have been partially seized by the Russian military were ready to hold referendums on joining Russia.
Moscow maintains that the referendum will provide Russian-speaking Ukrainians the chance to choose their future, even though Ukraine and its supporters deem the ballots a sham exercise intended to legitimize an unlawful annexation.
According to National Security Council spokesman Kirby, Putin's use of this rhetoric in the middle of a war that he is unmistakably losing within Ukraine sets a dangerous precedent.
We must be serious about these threats, and we are. We've done our best to keep an eye on his nuclear capabilities, and I can assure you that we haven't noticed anything that suggests we should adjust our approach to strategic deterrence at this time.
Plans for Russia to acquire additional Ukrainian territory were rejected by Kirby as "nothing more than a ruse by Vladimir Putin to try to gain... through politics and election issues that which he cannot gain militarily."
However, he added, "It won't work." "No one will be able to identify it. What then
But he said, "It's not going to work." "It won't be recognized by anyone. And Mr. Putin needs to leave Ukraine. That is what needs to happen. "He must put a halt to this war."
Analysts believe Putin's decision to call up 300,000 reservists in his address on Wednesday is evidence that Russia's forces in Ukraine are finding it difficult to hold on to the strip of land they control in the country's east and south.
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