No indication Russia is preparing to use nuclear bomb in Ukraine, Pentagon says

US not making any changes to its own nuclear stance

Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reuters

Russia has given no indication that it is preparing to use a nuclear bomb in Ukraine, the Pentagon said on Tuesday, after Moscow updated its doctrine on when it might use such weapons.

Russia earlier said that an attack against it by a non-nuclear power with the “participation or support of a nuclear power” will be seen as their “joint attack on the Russian Federation”. The change comes after the US reportedly granted Ukraine permission to use long-range missiles to attack targets deep inside Russia.

President-elect Donald Trump, who has claimed he would end the Russia-Ukraine war in one day, on Monday said the planet “has never been closer” to a Third World War and called for an immediate “cessation” of hostilities.

Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said the US was not surprised by Russia's change to its nuclear doctrine, which came on the 1,000th day since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine and as Kyiv said it had fired long-range missiles into Russia.

“It's something that they've been signalling that they intend to update over the last several weeks," Ms Singh told reporters. "It's the same irresponsible rhetoric that we've seen before and that we've seen, frankly, for the past two years, so it's something that we're going to continue to monitor.

“But we don't have any indications that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon within Ukraine, and we don't see any changes that need to be made to our own nuclear posture as well.”

Ms Singh would not confirm reports that the US has given Kyiv approval to strike Russian targets with Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) long-range rockets. She said any escalation is the fault of Russia, which has reportedly sent about 11,000 troops from North Korea to fight a Ukrainian incursion in the Kursk region.

“This administration told Russia that if they escalated this conflict by deploying [North Korean] troops, we would help Ukraine respond,” she said, noting that the Korean soldiers are now considered “fair game” for Ukraine to attack.

Ukraine and the Pentagon are bracing for Mr Trump's return to power on January 20. The president-elect has indicated a new approach in the conflict that western nations fear will include forcing Kyiv to make significant concessions to Moscow.

Ms Singh said the Pentagon is working to ensure Ukraine gets all the military assistance that it was promised before President Joe Biden's term ends.

“We are committed to using that full authority that Congress has allotted to us,” she said. “This building is working on ensuring that Ukraine has what it needs to be successful on the battlefield in the short and long term.”

The Biden administration is working to provide $7.1 billion in weapons – $4.3 billion from the 2024 supplemental and $2.8 billion that is still on the books in savings due to the Pentagon recalculating the value of systems sent – from the Pentagon’s stockpiles to spend all of the funds allocated before Mr Trump is sworn in.