Former commander of US Army Europe Ben Hodges said he saw no chance that Russia would use nuclear weapons in the conflict in Ukraine. He expressed this opinion in an interview with Kyiv Post.

Hodges acknowledged that Moscow has the technical ability to use nuclear weapons, and that Kiev should take this factor seriously. However, in the American general’s assessment, Russia has no need to take such a step.

He believes there is no place where the use of nuclear weapons could actually change the course of the fighting. According to Hodges, Moscow would not use them against Ukraine or anywhere else unless a direct existential threat to Russia itself emerged.

Earlier, the issue of possible nuclear weapons use was raised by the head of the Ukrainian president’s office, Kirill Budanov*, who is included in Russia’s list of terrorists and extremists. In May, he claimed that Russia was capable of using nuclear weapons at any moment, at any distance, and of striking the center of Kiev.

On May 20, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte warned that Russia’s use of nuclear weapons against Ukraine would lead to devastating consequences.

In February, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev said that nuclear weapons were extremely dangerous for all humanity. At the same time, he stressed that Russia would use them if the fate of the country were at stake.

* Individual included by Russia in the list of terrorists and extremists.