Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock pledged that the country would not be deterred by Russia's updated nuclear deterrence policy, emphasizing that Berlin had made that mistake in the past but would not do so again.
This was stated by Baerbock during a news conference in Poland on November 19, emphasizing that Germany will now heed the warnings of partners bordering Ukraine.
“Putin is playing with our fear," Baerbock said. “He didn’t just start doing this 1,000 days ago. He started back in 2014. And Germany in particular made the mistake back then, especially politically, of allowing itself to be intimidated by this fear and, above all, not listening to its partners, especially our Eastern European partners, who made it clear at the time: We must not rely on promises from the Kremlin. We must invest in our own security and protection.”
On November 19, Russian leader Vladimir Putin approved Russia's updated nuclear doctrine. According to the updated Fundamentals of State Nuclear Deterrence Policy, Russia reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in response to the use of weapons of mass destruction against itself or its allies, as well as in the event of aggression against it or Belarus involving conventional weapons.
This follows the US official confirmation that the White House has authorized Ukraine to use long-range weapons for strikes on Russian territory.
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