Ukraine’s military studying Russia's readiness to use weapons of mass destruction

Russia's actions are unpredictable and often irrational, so it can’t be ruled out that the Russians will actually use chemical or tactical nuclear weapons.

That’s according to Ukraine’s Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Maliar, who spoke on national TV, answering questions about the possibility of Russia using tactical nuclear weapons against her country.

"Russia always uses tactics of pressure and intimidation, but we can’t rule out anything, because it is extremely difficult to predict Russia. Perhaps this is, by the way, their strategy to remain unpredictable. Because they often do things that are irrational, and it seems they act out of revenge or insult… So when they threaten to use chemical or nuclear weapons, this must be studied to understand whether they have the potential to do all of this. Because Russia is also characterized by the fact that sometimes they say more than they can, actually," Maliar said.

According to the official, only intelligence can obtain information in advance about the enemy's specific preparatory steps for the use of chemical or nuclear weapons.

"First, to do this, you need several decisions within their chain of command, that is, it’s not a single person that makes a decision. There is no mythical ‘red button,’ this is all totally different. And secondly, only intelligence can talk about it. If intelligence agencies work effectively, they can provide such information. But when it comes to impulsive decision-making, it's harder to filter, monitor, and understand these things. Therefore, in the case of Putin, we just need to be ready for anything," said the deputy defense chief.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, Ukraine’s Defense Ministry spokesman Oleksandr Motuzyanyk said at a briefing on April 15 that Ukrainian and partner intelligence agencies had no information that Russia intended to use weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons, against Ukraine.