Speaking at a Democratic Party fundraiser in New York, his “off-camera” comments were heard by reporters from the White House pool. It comes as Russian officials have warned of the possibility of using tactical nuclear weapons after massive military setbacks in the invasion of Ukraine. Moscow accuses Zelensky of calling for world war – latest updates Describing Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Biden said he “got to know the guy pretty well.” “He’s not kidding when he talks about using tactical nuclear weapons or biological or chemical weapons because his military can say it’s significantly underperforming.” And he made clear his concerns that if such weapons were developed, they would quickly escalate into global nuclear conflict. “For the first time since the Cuban missile crisis, we have an immediate threat of using nuclear weapons, if in fact things continue on the path they are on,” he said. “I’m trying to figure out what Putin’s off-ramp is?” he said. “Where does he find a way out? Where is he in a position to not only lose face but lose significant power within Russia? “We haven’t faced the prospect of Armageddon since Kennedy and the Cuban Missile Crisis.” He added: “I don’t think there is such a thing as being able to easily (use) a tactical nuclear weapon and not end up with Armageddon.” During the 1962 crisis, the United States under President John Kennedy and the Soviet Union under Nikita Kruschev came close to using nuclear weapons due to the presence of Soviet missiles in Cuba.
What was the Cuban Missile Crisis?
The Cuban Missile Crisis is considered the closest the world has ever come to nuclear annihilation. The 13-day standoff in 1962 came after the US discovered that the Soviet Union had secretly developed nuclear weapons in Cuba. In response to the presence of US ballistic missiles in Italy and Turkey, as well as the failed Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba in 1961, Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev agreed to place missiles on the island. In response, then US President John F Kennedy ordered the island to be quarantined to prevent further missile deliveries. After several days of tension, Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Khrushchev reached an agreement for the Soviet Union to dismantle its weapons in Cuba in exchange for Mr. Kennedy declaring that the United States would not invade Cuba again. The US also secretly agreed to dismantle all of its medium-range ballistic missiles in Turkey. It also resulted in the creation of the Moscow-Washington telephone line to allow direct communication between the two superpowers. US officials have warned in recent months about the prospect of Russia using weapons of mass destruction in Ukraine after several strategic failures on the battlefield. Mr Putin has repeatedly referred to the use of his country’s vast nuclear arsenal. Read more: Vladimir Putin at 70 – how a KGB agent from Leningrad rose to the top of the Kremlin Use Chrome browser for more accessible video player 3:22 What is a tactical nuclear weapon? Last month, when he announced plans to draft Russian men to serve in Ukraine, he said: “I want to remind you that our country also has various means of destruction… and when the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, to protect Russia and our people, we will certainly use all the means at our disposal.” With a lingering look at the camera, he added: “It’s not a bluff.” On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Putin understood that “the world will never forgive” a Russian nuclear attack. “He understands that after the use of nuclear weapons he will no longer be able to maintain, let’s say, his life, and I’m sure of that,” Mr. Zelensky said.
