Kateryna Schwartz11:48, 03/09/24

It is reported that not one indicator led to the conclusion about the risk of a nuclear attack, but “a combination of events and intelligence.”

At the end of 2022, the United States was “thoroughly preparing” for the fact that Russia could potentially strike Ukraine with nuclear weapons, two high-ranking representatives of the US administration said, according to CNN .

The Biden administration was particularly concerned that Russia might use tactical or combat nuclear weapons, officials said. At the same time, the publication points to an unprecedented level of planning in case of “unforeseen circumstances”.

CNN writes that the conclusion about the risk of a nuclear attack was “led not by one indicator, but by a combination of events, analysis and, most importantly, very sensitive new intelligence.”

As one administration official said, the fears “were not just hypothetical.”

“We had to plan so that we would be in the best position in case this unthinkable event actually happened,” the source said.

The US National Security Council is said to have convened a series of meetings between late summer and fall 2022 to develop action plans in case there were very clear signs that the Russians were about to attack with nuclear weapons.

As CNN points out, Russia could consider a tactical nuclear strike as a means of deterring further losses of occupied Ukrainian territories, as well as any potential attack on the Russian Federation itself.

The publication reminds that at the same time the Russian propaganda machine was spreading a fake about a “Ukrainian dirty bomb”, which US officials feared could be used as a cover for a Russian nuclear attack.

In addition, it is emphasized that Western special services received information that there were talks between Russian officials at the time, in which a nuclear strike was openly discussed.

At the same time, the United States has never received intelligence that would indicate that Russia is taking steps to mobilize its nuclear forces to carry out such an attack, writes CNN.

However, U.S. officials were not sure they would know about the preparations for a tactical nuclear strike, the newspaper added: “Unlike strategic nuclear weapons capable of destroying entire cities, tactical or combat nuclear weapons are small enough to be moved silently and it could be launched from conventional systems already deployed on the Ukrainian battlefield.”

The threat of a nuclear strike has receded as the war “entered a period of relative stagnation,” according to CNN, but the U.S. and its allies remain vigilant.

(C)UNIAN 2024