U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday said that the threat of “nuclear Armageddon” was at its highest level since 1962, as Russian President Vladimir Putin escalated his war against Ukraine.
Speaking at a fundraiser for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Biden said that Putin was “not joking when he talks about the use of tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons.”
NEW – Ukraine's Zelensky calls on NATO to launch "preemptive strikes" against Russia to "eliminate the possibility" of a Russian nuclear strike.pic.twitter.com/gj6mSRZfFF
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“We have not faced the prospect of Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis,” he added.
In the 1962 crisis, the United States and the Soviet Union came close to the use of nuclear weapons over the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba.
This comes after Putin proclaimed the annexation of four Ukrainian regions on Sep. 30 while reiterating his threat to use nuclear weapons against Russia’s enemies.
“In the event of a threat to the territorial integrity of our country and to defend Russia and our people, we will certainly make use of all weapon systems available to us. This is not a bluff,” he said.
Russia’s nuclear doctrine allows for a nuclear strike after “aggression against the Russian Federation with conventional weapons when the very existence of the state is threatened”.
Speaking to Democratic donors, Biden warned that the use of a lower-yield tactical weapon could quickly spiral out of control into global destruction.
“I don’t think there’s any such thing as the ability to easily [use] a tactical nuclear weapon and not end up with Armageddon,” Biden said.
The U.S. president also said that he is “trying to figure” out Putin’s “off-ramp” in Ukraine.
“Where does he find a way out?” Biden asked. “Where does he find himself in a position that he does not not only lose face but lose significant power within Russia?”
On Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that the U.S. has seen no change in Russia’s nuclear forces that would require a change in the alert posture of U.S. nuclear forces.
“We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture, nor do we have indication that Russia is preparing to imminently use nuclear weapons,” Jean-Pierre said during a press briefing.
