Putin updates nuclear doctrine to lower threshold for use after Biden's arms decision for Ukraine
President Vladimir Putin has updated Russia's nuclear doctrine, stating that any conventional attack on Russia supported by a nuclear power will be viewed as a joint attack. This change lowers the threshold for using nuclear weapons. The revision follows U.S. President Joe Biden's decision to allow Ukraine to strike targets in Russia with longer-range missiles. Russia's Defense Ministry reported a Ukrainian missile strike in Bryansk, claiming air defenses intercepted most of the missiles. The new doctrine broadens the conditions under which Russia might use nuclear weapons, including responses to massive aerial attacks. It emphasizes that aggression against Russia by a non-nuclear power, with nuclear support, will be treated as an attack by the entire military bloc involved.