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Russia was seriously considering the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine, but China intervened and convinced Moscow to refrain from this step. This was stated by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in an interview with the Financial Times.
Blinken noted that the United States was extremely concerned about the increased risk of Russia using nuclear weapons.
“Even if the probability has increased from 5 to 15 percent, this is extremely serious… We have reason to believe that China has engaged Russia and said: ‘Don’t do this,’” the secretary of state said.
According to Blinken, a similar diplomatic dynamic could be repeated when the United States informed China that Russia was planning to launch nuclear weapons into space.
At the same time, Blinken emphasized that Putin’s strategic defeat is already evident: NATO is stronger and better equipped than ever before.
The secretary of state also responded to criticism of the alleged delay in providing military assistance to Ukraine. He emphasized that the United States took into account many factors, such as Ukraine’s ability to effectively use and maintain new weapons systems.
Earlier, U.S. intelligence said that allowing Ukraine to use U.S. weapons to strike Russian territory did not increase the risk of nuclear escalation by the Kremlin.
