Will nuclear weapons appear in the Baltics and Poland? 0 13

Nuclear weapons will not be deployed in the Baltic states — expert John Irat

American plans to deploy nuclear-capable bombers in additional European countries will not affect those states that currently do not have such weapons, said John Irat, director of the Washington Center for Nonproliferation. Thus, nuclear weapons should not appear in Poland and the Baltic states.

"The overall trend is towards the reduction of nuclear forces worldwide. The U.S. has the capability to use nuclear weapons virtually anywhere and anytime with its strategic forces," Irat explained in an interview with RTVI.US.

At the same time, the expert noted that NATO's nuclear weapons primarily serve a political rather than a strategic function. Their main task is to provide confidence in the reliability of the U.S. nuclear umbrella. In the event of a potential conflict, it is likely that strategic forces will be engaged first.

"NATO's doctrine states that nuclear weapons are intended solely for defense and deterrence. If deterrence works, there is no need to use it in immediate defense. If it fails, the world will have bigger problems than the use of a few nuclear weapons. That would be a scenario for a large-scale Third World War, and no one wants that," the RTVI.US interlocutor added.