The director of the US intelligence agency warns that Putin could order the use of nuclear weapons if the war does not develop as he expected.
CIA warning about what can happen in war. The director of the US intelligence agency, William Burns, has assured that the US does not rule out Russia using nuclear weapons in Ukraine, given the complications it has encountered in the 50 days of its military offensive in the country.
«Given the potential desperation of (Russian) President Putin and the Russian leadership, given the setbacks they have encountered militarily, no one can take lightly the threat that tactical nuclear weapons may be resorted to or low power,» Burns said in a speech at a university in Georgia (USA).
Despite this, so far the CIA has seen no evidence that Russia is preparing to use such missiles. «Although we have seen rhetorical positions by the Kremlin around raising its nuclear alert level, we have not seen much tangible evidence of such deployments to support these concerns,» he added.
William Burns made these remarks after Russia said on Thursday that it could transfer nuclear weapons to the Baltic Sea region if Finland and Sweden finally carry out their intentions to join NATO. In fact, Vladimir Putin has assured that he is going to put his nuclear weapons system on alert.
CIA cooperation with Ukraine
After making this warning, the head of the CIA has also reported the collaboration that the intelligence agency of the North American country is carrying out with Ukraine. “We are committed to quickly and effectively sharing intelligence with our Ukrainian partners, during the fighting and for months beforehand.”
Putin’s intentions and duration of the war
Burns added that there was «clear evidence» that Putin was trying to «blame» the Ukrainians for provoking a conflict and that Russian intentions on Ukrainian territory had been given prior notice before February 24. Regarding the duration of the war, the CIA foresees a prolonged duration in time since the Russian president intends to extend his influence in the world.
