Ukraine’s nuclear mistake

It turns out that not only evil dictators need nuclear weapons. Any country that has a nuclear-armed neighbour with a grievance urgently needs them too. Indeed, any country that thinks it might one day find itself in a confrontation with a nuclear-armed country, however far away it may be, needs nuclear weapons.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, depicted in this drawing, invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24. Would Putin’s Russia have invaded Ukraine three weeks ago if it had 1,900 nuclear warheads on 176 ICBMs and 2,600 tactical nuclear weapons? Of course not. He wouldn’t have invaded if Ukraine had even one nuclear missile capable of reaching Moscow, writes Gwynne Dyer. Image courtesy of Pixabay

Opinion

BY GWYNNE DYER

March 14, 2022

LONDON, U.K.—Would Vladimir Putin’s Russia have invaded Ukraine three weeks ago if it had 1,900 nuclear warheads on 176 ICBMs and 2,600 tactical nuclear weapons? Of course not. He wouldn’t have invaded if Ukraine had even one nuclear missile capable of reaching Moscow. When the Soviet Union w...

To keep reading, subscribe and become a political insider.

Only $7.76 a week for an annual subscription.

Enjoy unlimited website access and the digital newspaper.

Cancel anytime.

Already a Subscriber?

Get Weekend Point of View Newsletter

A round up of the past weekâ€™s opinion writers and columnists on Saturdays and Sundays.

By entering your email address you consent to receive email from The Hill Times containing news, analysis, updates and offers. You may unsubscribe at any time. See our privacy policy