USA steps up intel, surveillance after Putin's nuke threats
Source: (
https://politi.co/3ST4lE2)
U.S. and allied intelligence agencies are stepping up efforts to
detect any Russian military moves or communications that might
signal that Vladimir Putin has ordered the use of nuclear weapons
in Ukraine, according to five current and former U.S. officials.
But any indications that the erratic Russian leader has decided to
unleash the unthinkable - in a desperate attempt to re-seize the
initiative or bully the international community to meet his demands
- could come too late, they warned.
Most of Russia's aircraft, along with its conventional missile and
rocket launchers, can also deliver smaller, tactical nuclear weapons.
Those weapons are designed for more targeted use on the battlefield
than strategic arms such as intercontinental ballistic missiles,
which give off tell-tale signs when their units are put on alert
or mustered in training exercises.
That means that unless Putin or his commanders want the world to
know in advance, the U.S. might never know when Russian forces
have swapped out conventional munitions for atomic bombs.
It is an increasingly vexing problem as Russian forces struggle to
regain the momentum in Ukraine and signs grow that Putin is
increasingly unpopular at home, especially after he ordered a limited
military draft last week.
"We're watching it more closely," said a U.S. government official
with access to intelligence on Moscow's nuclear forces and strategy
who, like others interviewed for this article, was not authorized to
speak publicly.
