Where Vladimir Putin could use nuclear weapons in war against Ukraine

Russia has been rattling its nuclear sabre as its forces continue to be pushed back by Ukraine, even after the sham referenda.

Vladimir Putin may turn the war in Ukraine nuclear by detonating a bomb on the border in a message to the West, it has been claimed.

Russia has been rattling its nuclear sabre as its forces continue to be pushed back by Ukraine, even as Moscow declared four regions to be their own.

Putin’s biggest submarine, Belgorod, which can be armed with “apocalypse” nuclear torpedoes, is on the move, and there have been reports a convoy linked to a nuclear unit is in transit in Russia.

And now the world waits with bated to breath to see if Putin will make good on his threats as his army continues to suffer humiliating defeats.

Russian President Vladimir Putin addresses a rally marking the annexation of four regions of Ukraine. (Photo by Sergei KARPUKHIN / SPUTNIK / AFP)

Defence sources reportedly claim one of the options on the table is for Putin to detonate a nuclear weapon on the border in a massive show of force, reports The Times.

Putin would have to find a large enough area to detonate the weapon without harming his own people - especially those who it has recently “welcomed” as part of Russia.

But the risky play could send a clear message to Ukraine and the West that he isn’t afraid to use nukes in combat for the first since the end of World War II.

It is widely understood the current nuclear threats are referring specifically to smaller, tactical weapons designed for battlefield use rather than massive city-killing bombs, The Sun reports.

Nato is reported to have warned its members about the possibility that Putin could be preparing for a nuclear escalation.

Defence sources said that a more likely option however is for Putin to use a nuclear weapon in the Black Sea.

Putin could detonate a weapon over the sea which is bordered by Russia and Ukraine, along with Nato states Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey.

He could potentially even detonate a bomb on Snake Island - a symbol of the Ukrainian resistance from earlier in the war, famous for the message telling the Russians to “go f*** yourselves”.

Dr Rod Thornton, a security expert at King’s College London, suggested the outpost as a target during an interview with Forbes.

Other options could be a full on battlefield strike on Ukrainian forces using a tactical nuclear weapons.

Russian Yars RS-24 intercontinental ballistic missile systems move through Red Square during the Victory Day military parade in Moscow. (Photo by Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP)

Smaller, such devices would be still be utterly devastating - killing thousands and leave a large area bathed in radiation.

Other more drastic - and less realistic options - could see Putin could all out and launch a strike on Kyiv, or even attempt to strike Western weapons entering Ukraine from Poland.

And all these options would likely illicit a response in the West.

It could range from a US nuclear attack on Russians to a sudden effort to end the war and negotiate peace between Kyiv and Moscow.

Either way, the nuclear danger puts humanity on the precipice of the one of the most dangerous moments since the Cold War with the looming spectre of World War 3.

Alexander Gabuev, a senior fellow with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, told The Washington Post: “Time and again we are seeing that Vladimir Putin sees this as a big existential war and he’s ready to up the stakes if he is losing on the battlefield.

“At the same time I don’t think the West will back down, so it’s a very hard challenge now.”

He warned the world could “two of three steps away” from the unthinkable - nuclear war.

Professor Joe Siracus, from Curtin University in Australia, also warned the world is a “nanosecond away” from a full blown nuclear crisis.

He suggested Putin could see one of his options be to strike Western weapons before they arrive in Ukraine.

“We’re very, very close,” the prof warned.

He went on: “Chances of war … between Putin and Biden are about 10 per cent if given their own ability to do so.

“The chances of an accidental war right now are about 90 per cent because there are no guardrails anywhere and theatre commanders can do what they want.”

This story was originally published by The Sun and was reproduced with permission