Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his nuclear forces to be on high alert as the war with Ukraine enters the fourth day.
On Thursday, Putin invaded Ukraine, its neighbour to the south-west, heightening the tension between the countries which dates back to 2014.
In a video of him on Sunday during a meeting with security chiefs, Putin said the decision followed “unfriendly” economic sanctions against Russia.
“Dear colleagues, as you can see, not only do western countries take unfriendly economic measures against our country — I mean the illegal sanctions everyone knows about — but also the top officials of leading NATO countries allow themselves to make aggressive statements with regards to our country,” Putin was quoted as saying according to a translation by Channel 4 news.
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“That is why I order the defence minister and the chief of the general staff to put Russian army deterrence forces on high combat alert.”
A country’s “nuclear deterrent” refers to nuclear weapons available as a form of defence to prevent attacks from other nations.
The development comes days after Putin warned of “severe consequences” if foreign countries interfered in the Russia-Ukraine crisis.
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Meanwhile, Russia has been hit with several sanctions amid the invasion, including an announcement by the United States (US) on “sweeping financial sanctions and stringent export controls that will have a profound impact on Russia’s economy, financial system, and access to cutting-edge technology”.
The US, United Kingdom, European Union and Canada, on Saturday, also agreed to remove “selected” Russian banks from the SWIFT international payment system.
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