Insane Use Of Nukes vs Ukraine Would Devastate Russia, U.S. Warns

The United States warned of "catastrophic consequences" if Moscow were to use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, after Russia's Foreign Minister said regions holding widely-criticized sham referendums would get full protection if annexed by Moscow, Simon Lewis, Robert Birsel, and Madeline Chambers reported for Reuters.

Photo Insert: The latest US warning followed a thinly veiled nuclear threat made last Wednesday by President Vladimir Putin.

Votes in four eastern Ukrainian regions, aimed at annexing territory Russia has taken by force mostly since its invasion in February, were staged for a third day on Sunday despite protests by Ukrainians and allegations of vote stuffing by Putin’s minions.

The Russian parliament could move to formalize the annexation within days. By incorporating the four areas of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia into Russia, Moscow could portray attacks to retake them as an attack on Russia itself, a warning to Kyiv and its Western allies.

The Russian annexations raise the risk of a direct military confrontation between Russia and the NATO military alliance as Western arms are being used by Ukrainian troops.

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Sunday the US would respond decisively to any Russian use of nuclear weapons against Ukraine and that it had spelled out to Moscow the "catastrophic consequences" it would face.

"If Russia crosses this line, there will be catastrophic consequences for Russia. The US will respond decisively," Sullivan told NBC's "Meet the Press" program.

The latest US warning followed a thinly veiled nuclear threat made last Wednesday by President Vladimir Putin, who said Russia would use any weapons to defend its territory. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made the point more directly at a news conference on Saturday after addressing the UN General Assembly in New York.

British Prime Minister Liz Truss said Britain and its allies should not heed threats from Putin, who had made what she called a strategic mistake as he had not anticipated the strength of reaction from the West.

"We should not be listening to his saber-rattling and his bogus threats. Instead, what we need to do is continue to put sanctions on Russia and continue to support the Ukrainians," Truss told CNN in an interview broadcast on Sunday.

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