Russia vows nuclear response to any 'massive conventional attack' on its soil

Decision comes days after the US granted Ukraine limited permission for long-range missile strikes on Russian territory

Russian President Vladimir wants to expand nuclear weapon use in response to conventional attacks, particularly from non-nuclear states supported by nuclear powers. AP

Russia will fire nuclear weapons in response to a massive conventional attack on its soil, including by drones, according to an updated nuclear doctrine that allows the country to expand its use of atomic weapons.

The decision comes days after the US granted Ukraine limited permission for long-range missile strikes using the ATACMS (Army Tactical Missile Systems, pronounced “attack-ems”) weapons inside Russia.

The document, posted online on Tuesday, on the 1,000th day of Russia's war against Ukraine, says that an attack against Russia by a non-nuclear power with the “participation or support of a nuclear power” will be seen as their “joint attack on the Russian Federation”.

It does not specify whether such an attack would necessarily lead to a nuclear response, but it mentions the “uncertainty of scale, time and place of possible use of nuclear deterrent” among the key principles of the nuclear deterrence.

At the same time, it spells out conditions for using nuclear weapons in greater detail compared to the previous version of the doctrine, noting they could be used in case of a massive air attack involving ballistic and cruise missiles, aircraft, drones and other flying vehicles.

Ukraine used the ATACMS weapons for the first time in a border region within Russian territory on Tuesday, according to RBC Ukraine, citing an official in the nation’s military.

Russian President Vladimir Putin pledged in September to revise its doctrine to account for “aggression” by non-nuclear states supported by a nuclear power.

The Russian leader has previously warned the US and its European allies against allowing Ukraine to strike deep inside Russia using Western long-range, high-precision weapons, saying this would bring them into direct conflict with his country.

Ukraine has been firing its home-made drones deep into Russia for months, but the US weapons are more destructive. Officials in Ukraine have said they need the capability to hit the airbases and aircraft Russia uses for glide-bomb and missile attacks.

US officials have said the ATACMS weapons can be used only in the “specific and limited” of Kursk, near the border separating the two warring countries. Washington cited the presence of North Korean troops in Ukraine as justification to allow the use of its weapons.

Asked about whether the updated doctrine was deliberately issued on the heels of the US’s decision to ease restrictions on Ukraine using its longer-range missiles to strike Russia, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the document was published “in a timely manner” and that Mr Putin instructed the government to update it earlier this year so that it is “in line with the current situation”.

“The Russian Federation retains the right to use nuclear weapons in the case of aggression using conventional weapons against it” that poses a critical threat to sovereignty or territorial integrity, Mr Peskov said, according to the state-run Tass news service.

With only two months left in office, experts say US President Joe Biden's priority is to do what he can to put Ukraine in the best possible position before making way for Donald Trump, who has said he can end the war in a day.

US Treasuries, the Japanese yen and Swiss franc, typical havens during times of geopolitical strife, rose. The German 10-year yield fell as much as eight basis points to its lowest since October.

Ukraine is still losing territory, currently at its highest rate since Russia invaded in February 2022, although this is at high cost, with Moscow losing a record daily average of 1,500 dead or wounded so far this month.

An overnight Russian strike in the eastern Ukrainian region of Sumy that gutted a Soviet-era resident building and killed at least nine people, including a child. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy published images of rescue workers hauling bodies from the debris and called on Kyiv's allies to “force” the Kremlin into peace.

The Foreign Ministry echoed Mr Zelenskyy's comments in a statement marking the anniversary by calling on allies to increase their military support to bring about a “sustainable” end to the war.

“Ukraine will never submit to the occupiers, and the Russian military will be punished for violating international law,” the ministry said. “We need peace through strength, not appeasement,” the ministry added, referring to growing calls for Ukraine to sit down at the negotiating table with Russia to end the war.