Russia's Nuclear Threat to West More Than Zero Percent as Putin Faces No Internal Checks

What was said

"I think the chances of Russia using a nuclear weapon are uh certainly less than 50%, but it's more than 0%. And if Russia felt that it was backed into a corner, I think it really could uh think to use a tactical nuclear weapon as a a way of of trying to get out of that corner. And there's not any checks and balances in the Russian political system. You know, Putin doesn't have to listen to uh the voice of the people."

Fitzpatrick assesses that Russia could deploy tactical nuclear weapons if cornered in Ukraine, with Putin facing no domestic constraints on such a decision. The expert notes Russia's reliance on nuclear rhetoric stems from economic inferiority and military setbacks, with Ukraine's effective drone warfare putting Russian forces on the defensive and suffering unsustainable casualties.