Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSign up WASHINGTON, Sept 17 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden urged Russian President Vladimir Putin not to routinely use nuclear or chemical weapons in the wake of failures in Ukraine, in an interview with CBS News that aired on Sunday. Ukraine’s military pushed back Russian forces in a blitzkrieg across the country’s northeast this week, putting Putin under pressure from nationalists at home to regain the initiative. read more Putin has warned that Moscow would respond more forcefully if its troops come under further pressure, raising concerns that it could at some point use unconventional means such as small nuclear or chemical weapons. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSign up Asked by a “60 Minutes” reporter what he would tell Putin if he considered using such weapons, Biden said, “Don’t do it. Two,” in an excerpt of the interview released Saturday by CBS. Biden said the U.S. response would be “consistent,” but declined to elaborate. Russia “would become more of a pariah in the world than ever,” Biden said. “Depending on the extent of what they do will determine what response there is.” Russian government officials have dismissed Western suggestions that Moscow would routinely use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, but it remains a concern for some in the West. In a speech announcing the February 24 invasion of Ukraine, Putin gave a veiled but unmistakable warning that if the West intervened in what he called a “special military operation,” he could use nuclear weapons in response. read more “No matter who tries to stand in our way or create threats to our country and our people, they should know that Russia will respond immediately and the consequences will be the likes of which you have never seen in your entire history “, he said. he said, according to a Kremlin translation. read more Other options for Putin could include mobilizing Russia’s reserves, numbering around 2 million men, and pressuring Europe to heavily arm Ukraine in a truce with Russia, freezing the region this winter by banning all exports energy. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSign up Report by Timothy Gardner. Editor: Leslie Adler Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
