Russian president puts nuclear forces on high alert

In a dramatic escalation of East-West tensions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin on Sunday ordered Russian nuclear deterrent forces put on high alert in response to what he called “aggressive statements” by leading NATO powers.

The order means Putin has ordered Russia’s nuclear weapons prepared for increased readiness to launch, raising the threat that the tensions could boil over into a nuclear war. Putin also cited hard-hitting financial sanctions imposed by the West against Russia, including Putin himself.

US Ambassador to the United Nations, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said on Sunday that Putin’s decision indicates the Russian president is “continuing to escalate” the war in Ukraine in a way that is “unacceptable.”

At the same time, the office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said a delegation would meet with Russian officials for talks, near the Belarus border.

Speaking at a meeting with his top officials, Putin directed the Russian defence minister and the chief of the military’s General Staff to put the nuclear deterrent forces in a “special regime of combat duty.”

Putin’s move came as Russian troops entered Ukraine’s second-largest city of Kharkiv and fighting is underway in the streets, according to the Associated Press.

Videos posted on Ukrainian media and social networks showed Russian vehicles moving across Kharkiv and a light vehicle burning on the street. Residents were urged to stay inside.

The United Nations says it has confirmed at least 240 civilian casualties, including at least 64 people killed in the fighting in Ukraine that erupted since Russia’s invasion on Thursday, according to the AP.

More than 200,000 people have fled the Ukraine to neighboring countries. UN officials believe up to four million people could leave if fighting continues.