President Biden said Monday that Americans should not fear Russia’s invasion of Ukraine devolving into a global nuclear war despite Moscow putting its nuclear forces on high alert following harsh US sanctions.
“Should Americans be worried about nuclear war?” a reporter asked the president following a Black History Month event at the White House.
“No,” Biden replied.
Russian President Vladimir Putin directed his military Sunday to move to heightened readiness to launch nuclear weapons because of “aggressive statements” by NATO countries.
Putin directed Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the military’s General Staff, to put their nuclear forces in a “special regime of combat duty.”
“Western countries aren’t only taking unfriendly actions against our country in the economic sphere, but top officials from leading NATO members made aggressive statements regarding our country,” Putin said.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a key Putin ally, claimed Sunday that sanctions against Russia could cause a third world war, though for now the US has not targeted Russia’s oil and gas exports.
“A great deal is being said about the banking sector. Gas, oil, SWIFT,” Lukashenko said. “It’s worse than war. Russia is being pushed towards a third world war. We should be very reserved and steer clear of it. Because nuclear war is the end of everything.”
After announcing initially limited sanctions last week, the White House over the weekend imposed additional sanctions targeting Putin’s vast personal wealth while cutting Russian banks out of the SWIFT international transaction system.