Serbian president warns Putin may use nuclear weapons if security is threatened

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic issued a stark warning Tuesday, cautioning that Russian President Vladimir Putin may resort to nuclear weapons if Moscow’s security and military are severely threatened and no alternatives remain.

The warning comes after U.S. President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use American long-range missiles for deeper strikes into Russian territory, according to reports citing U.S. officials on Monday. The developments have added a new dimension to the ongoing conflict, which has surpassed its 1,000-day mark, as military and political tensions intensify.

Earlier Tuesday, Putin signed a decree enacting updates to Russia’s nuclear doctrine, formalizing changes he first announced during a Sept. 25 address at the Russian Federation Security Council’s standing conference on nuclear deterrence.

Vucic, addressing the public, described the global situation as perilously close to disaster, emphasizing the gravity of potential escalation.

“When you have 10 steps to complete disaster, we have crossed the ninth,” Vucic said. “I think that no one will hesitate to use all the weapons they have… In the West, they will say that Putin is playing games and threatening with this, but he is actually afraid, and I will tell you that few people know President Putin like I do.”

Vucic further warned that Putin would act decisively if Moscow’s security is jeopardized. “If the security of Moscow and its forces are threatened… he will not hesitate for a moment,” he stressed.

The Serbian leader also acknowledged his country’s lack of preparedness for a potential escalation, particularly in terms of civil defense infrastructure. He noted that Serbia currently has a shelter capacity for 257,000 people but requires significant expansion.

“We will have to… start rebuilding the infrastructure again, at least to reach the number of a million, a million and a half that we can accommodate in shelters,” he said. “I apologize to the citizens that we did not start this work on time, but we will deal with it.”