A network of telegram channels supervised by Russian intelligence began to spread the message that in response to the supply of heavy weapons to Ukraine, Russia could use nuclear weapons. It seems that British intelligence warned Ukraine about this.

Threats of nuclear weapons have been one of the most widespread messages of Russian propaganda since the beginning of the war. Back in April, propaganda was spreading this message, but then the reason was the “use of nuclear weapons by Russia” due to the fact that Ukraine should recognize Crimea and Donbas as Russian. If it refuses, Russia “retains the right” to use weapons.

Another wave of discussions about the “use of nuclear weapons” occurred in September, when, against the backdrop of the defeat of the Russian army near Kharkiv and the liberation of the Kharkiv region by the Ukrainian army, Putin announced the start of mobilization. Then and later, he stated that he “does not bluff about the use of nuclear weapons” if hostilities begin on the “territories of the Russian Federation”. Following these statements, Russia annexed parts of the Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk regions. And every day there is fighting on these territories. The Ukrainian army has since liberated a significant part of the Kherson region, along with Kherson, as well as settlements in other regions, but the Russians did not use nuclear weapons. Now the propaganda is back to the “use of nuclear weapons” thesis because of the actions of the West, which finally decided to supply Ukraine with heavy weapons.