Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that if Western nations started sending troops to Ukraine, it could lead to nuclear warfare.
Putin made the comments in his annual state of the nation address. They came partially in response to French President Emmanuel Macron stating on Monday that sending troops to Ukraine couldn't be ruled out.
"They must realize that we also have weapons that can hit targets on their territory. All this really threatens a conflict with the use of nuclear weapons and the destruction of civilization," Putin said. "Don't they get that?"
The Russian leader also touted the country's development of hypersonic nuclear missiles, which can travel over five times faster than the speed of sound. "Strategic nuclear forces are in a state of full readiness," he said.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) said in response to Putin's remarks that "the escalation of bellicose rhetoric over Ukraine needs to stop."
"President Putin’s return to overt nuclear threats today is unacceptable," the group added.
Leaked files that were released by The Financial Times on Wednesday revealed when Russia's military would consider deploying a nuclear weapon. The documents, dated between 2008 and 2014, indicated different scenarios that could trigger the use of nuclear weapons. For example, if 20% of Russia's strategic ballistic missile submarines were destroyed or if three airfields were destroyed.
Putin has referenced the possibility of nuclear war multiple times since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began in February, 2022. His latest comments, though, are seen as some of the most overt statements he's made on the issue. Putin chided western nations for their rhetoric regarding Russia's intentions on Thursday.
"Recently there have been more and more unsubstantiated accusations against Russia, for example that we are allegedly going to deploy nuclear weapons in space. Such innuendo... is a ploy to draw us into negotiations on their terms, which are favorable only to the United States," he said. "On the eve of the U.S. presidential election, they simply want to show their citizens and everyone else that they still rule the world."
