Kremlin Denies Western Accusations: Russia Only Uses Nuclear Weapons If Its Existence Is Threatened

Illustration of a Russian nuclear missile. (Wikimedia Commons/Dmitry Terekhov)

JAKARTA - Russia's security policy states it will use nuclear weapons, if its existence is threatened, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told CNN in an interview Tuesday.

The comments, nearly four weeks after Russia sent troops to Ukraine, come amid Western fears the conflict there could escalate into nuclear war.

Having failed to capture the capital Kyiv or any other major city with a swift offensive, Russia is waging a war that has left some urban areas in ruins.

Peskov made the comments in an English-language interview when asked if he believed President Vladimir Putin would not use nuclear weapons.

"We have a concept of internal security and it is public, you can read all the reasons for the use of nuclear weapons. So, if it is an existential threat to our country, then it (nuclear arsenal) can be used according to our concept," he said, citing Reuters from CNN March 23.

"There is no other reason mentioned in the text," he stressed further referring to the concept of state security.

Earlier, President Vladimir Putin last month ordered Russia's nuclear forces to be on high alert. In line with the order, Russia's Defense Ministry said on February 28, its nuclear missile forces and North and Pacific fleets had been placed on enhanced combat duty, the Interfax news agency reported.

Meanwhile, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on March 14, "The prospect of nuclear conflict, once unthinkable, is now returning to the realm of possibility."

The 27-day invasion has forced more than 3.5 million people to flee, brought Russia's unprecedented economic isolation, raising fears of a wider conflict in the West unthinkable for decades.

The United Nations human rights office in Geneva said on Tuesday it had recorded 953 civilian deaths and 1.557 injuries since the invasion. The Kremlin denies targeting civilians.