Narendra Modi, Xi Jinping helped dissuade Russian President Vladimir Putin from nuclear strike on Ukraine: US report
New Delhi, March 10
United States officials say that outreach and public statements from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese leader Xi Jinping helped dissuade Russia from making a nuclear strike on Ukraine in late 2022, claimed a US media report.
The US had assessed that Russia could make a tactical nuclear strike as it was suffering losses of territory it had captured in Ukraine.
The US not only messaged Russia directly, but also strongly pressed other countries to which Moscow might listen, the media house said, quoting US officials. Russia, they believe, was dissuaded due to pressure not only from the US and the West but also the Global South.
As per the US assessment, Russia was losing ground in the late 2022. Ukrainian forces were advancing on Russian-occupied Kherson in the south and it was in danger of being lost. Many of the Russian units were in danger of being surrounded. The Biden administration felt such a huge loss for Russia could trigger the use of nuclear weapons.
The US administration’s antenna went up after Russian media began carrying reports about a Ukrainian dirty bomb. US officials suspected that this could be used as a cover for a Russian nuclear strike. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu too called up his counterparts in the US, the UK, France and Turkiye, and mentioned the possibility of Ukraine planning to use a dirty bomb.
The western countries rejected Shoigu’s warnings but began undertaking an urgent outreach. Secretary of State Antony Blinken communicated US concerns to his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, and US Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Milley called his Russian counterpart, General Valery Gerasimov. In addition they pressed leaders of the Global South, including PM Modi and Xi, to use their good ties with the Kremlin to dissuade it from a nuclear strike, claimed the media report.
