MOSCOW – President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia could “theoretically” use nuclear weapons if there was a threat to its territorial integrity or existence, but that it did not need to.
He was speaking at the plenary session of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum.
“Nuclear weapons have been made to ensure our security in the broadest sense of the word and the existence of the Russian state, but we… have no such need (to use them),” Mr Putin said.
He also lauded the health of Russia’s public finances and said additional defence spending had been needed to bolster national security as Moscow conducts what it calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine.
Mr Putin said the public finances were generally balanced, putting the US$42 billion (S$56 billion) budget deficit so far this year largely down to the postponement of some planned expenditures.
Analysts and data, however, suggest that slumping energy revenues and soaring military spending have played a key role.
“Naturally, additional funds were needed to strengthen defence and security, to purchase weapons,” Mr Putin said. “We were forced to do this to protect our country’s sovereignty.
“I should say that on the whole this justifies itself from an economic point of view,” Mr Putin added. REUTERS
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