Putin Is Expanding His Already Massive Nuclear Arsenal, Lloyd Austin Warns

Russian President Vladimir Putin's regime is working to expand and modernize its nuclear arsenal, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said, as fears continue to circulate about a potential nuclear conflict with Russia.

Speaking at a ceremony on Friday, Austin noted that as Russia continues its months-long war against Ukraine, "the whole world has seen Putin engage in deeply irresponsible nuclear saber-rattling," according to Reuters. Putin suggested during a televised address in September that Russia could respond to alleged nuclear "blackmail" from the West with his country's own weapons.

"Those who are trying to blackmail us with nuclear weapons should know that the winds can also turn in their direction," Putin said.

Russia's nuclear expansion would inflate an already massive stockpile of nuclear weapons. According to the Federation of American Scientists, Russia already owns the largest inventory of nuclear weapons in the world. The U.S. is the only country that comes close to matching Russia, though it still holds second place.

Putin's September address is not the only instance in which a Russian official has mentioned or pushed for a nuclear strike since the start of the war in Ukraine on February 24. Chechen Leader Ramzan Kadyrov, one of Putin's allies who has supported the war in Ukraine, said that he believed Russia needed to take more drastic measures such as the use of "low-yield nuclear weapons" after a defeat in the Ukrainian city of Lyman.

Russian state television personalities, some of whom are also allies of Putin, have repeatedly called on Russia to conduct nuclear strikes on Ukraine and even Western countries.

Still, experts have cast doubt on whether Putin would actually follow through on threats to deploy a nuclear weapon. Retired U.S. Army Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, who formerly served as the commanding general of the U.S. Army Europe, told the Kyiv Post in October that even though he takes nuclear threats very seriously, it is "very unlikely" that Russia will resort to nuclear weapons in its war in Ukraine. That's because the Kremlin and Russian military leaders are aware of the consequences they would face with such an escalation, Hodges said.

Putin said in October that it wouldn't make sense politically or militarily for Russia to conduct a nuclear strike in Ukraine, and that Russia had only hinted about the use of nuclear weapons "in response to statements made by Western leaders."

Michael Kimmage, professor and chair of the Catholic University of America's history department, told Newsweek last month that Putin might be playing a yo-yo game with his nuclear rhetoric, "where he'll ratchet up the tension and then he'll scale it back, just to keep us confused and keep us wondering about what his next step is and keep us worrying."

Newsweek reached out to the Kremlin for comment.

Update 12/9/22, 2:25 p.m. ET: This story was updated with additional information and background.