World must stand stronger against latest Putin outrage

US President Joe Biden’s warning that the world is closer to Armageddon than at any time for 60 years should be treated with greater urgency after Monday’s ruthless Russian bombardment of Kyiv and cities across Ukraine. Vladimir Putin’s revenge for what was, for him, last weekend’s acutely embarrassing attack on the vital road and rail bridge linking the Russian mainland and Crimea was always going to be brutal. But even by the standards of the monstrous depredations he has committed so far in Ukraine, Monday’s display of grotesque aerial terrorism suggests an ominous intensification in the war that lends immediacy to Mr Biden’s grim warning.

The Russian tyrant will stop at nothing. His indiscriminate firing at mostly civilian targets, including children’s playgrounds, of at least 84 cruise missiles and 24 drones leaves no doubt Mr Putin’s ugly war is becoming even uglier as his back is to the wall and his army dispirited. His repeated allusions to resorting to the use of nuclear weapons cannot be dismissed.

It may be that in strictly military terms Mr Putin’s bombardment served little purpose beyond terrorising local populations. Some of the towns targeted, such as Lviv in Ukraine’s west, are far from the battlefield. But similar to the V-2 terror-bombing by Germany in the final stages of World War II, the Russian despot’s aim was doubtless to instil fear even in parks and playgrounds. Targets included Kyiv’s distinctly non-military opera house, a leading university, hotels used by foreigners, a major church and the German consulate.

But underpinning the onslaught were more dire warnings about the use of nuclear weapons and other signs that the war is set to get much worse as Mr Putin, following the Kerch bridge attack, seeks to transform the conflict from a “special military operation” into a “counter-terrorism operation”. An indication of what is coming emerged from a meeting of Mr Putin’s national security council, with Belarus declaring itself ready to form a “joint battle group” with Russia. Some of the missiles hammering into Kyiv were fired from Belarus and Mr Putin has raised the stakes significantly by installing Iskander-M missiles there. They are within range of not only major Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, but also key NATO members including Poland and the Baltic States. As much as fears have grown that Mr Putin will resort to using nuclear weapons, so have apprehensions escalated of conflict directly between NATO member states and Russia.

Apart from his nuclear bellicosity, there are signs of Mr Putin escalating in other ways. Although Moscow denies involvement, German authorities suspect foul play by “a hostile state” in the sudden sabotage of the German railway system’s vital fibre-optic cables. A Danish island has been left without electricity as a result of unexplained underwater cable-cutting, with Moscow the suspected culprit.

Monday’s onslaught showed how frustrated Mr Putin is. His appointment of the notorious “General Armageddon”, Sergei Surovikin, to lead the Russian war effort was a clear signal of the ever more brutal course on which he is embarked. The general, a decorated so-called Hero of Russia, played a key role in the horrifying 2016 destruction of the Syrian city of Aleppo. He is unlikely to have any compunction about using the same tactics in Ukraine.

Mr Biden’s pledge to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday to “continue providing Ukraine with the support needed to defend itself, including advanced air defence systems” was crucial. Countries everywhere must redouble their efforts to ensure Kyiv has the means to defend itself. No country – not even those that still say they are friendly towards Mr Putin’s odious regime – can remain unmoved or insouciant about the escalating threat posed by the Russian President.

As Mr Biden said: “I don’t think there’s any such thing as an ability to easily (use) a tactical nuclear weapon and not end up with Armageddon.” Given that prospect, it is heartening that even traditional Russian allies are starting to make the ethical choices that they should in the face of Mr Putin’s nuclear bluster. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia deserve praise for refusing to take part in joint military exercises with Russia this month.

Others such as India, whose External Affairs Minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, was in Canberra on Monday with Foreign Minister Penny Wong, should take a leaf out of their book. Senator Wong may be right when she says Australia has a “high level of strategic trust” in India as a partner in the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue despite New Delhi’s close, longstanding relationship with Moscow. But that does not excuse India’s Modi government from what should be its outrage – together with that of most of the rest of the world – over the appalling human rights abuses and nuclear threats being made by Mr Putin.

New Delhi is betraying its admirable status as the world’s most populous democracy by being so supine and accepting of the atrocities being committed by Moscow. Mr Putin will end his senseless war only when it becomes clear to him that the cost of continuing it is too high. India should be playing a leading role in persuading him of that, not sitting on the sidelines.