The nuclear threat and the chance of all-out war in Europe has not been this great in decades. But how many nuclear weapons does Russia actually have? And can it just drop an atomic bomb on the west? You can read it in this article.
Russia’s Nuclear Weapons Arsenal
Russia is the largest nuclear power in the world. The country has more than 6,000 nuclear weapons at its disposal. It involves various warheads that are placed on missiles. These can then be fired from silos, submarines and aircraft. Intercontinental ballistic missiles can hit America without difficulty, Europe could use medium-range missiles.
A warhead can also be hung under an aircraft like a bomb and released over the target. This method was used by the Americans in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. We all know what the devastating power of a nuclear bomb can be. The fact that Putin has had his nuclear weapons arsenal sharpened is met with disapproval and horror by the rest of the world.
The fact that Putin is breaking the news about the arming of Russia’s nuclear weapons says a lot about the position he is in now. He wants to flex his muscles and basically say that the west should not interfere with his invasion of Ukraine. Whether he will actually say nuclear weapons remains to be seen. Putin also knows that there will be a counter-reaction from the west.
Because America also has a large arsenal of nuclear weapons. There are 6800 nuclear warheads ready for deployment. France also has 300 that can be fired immediately from a submarine. So the chance that Putin will actually use those nuclear weapons is small, but it is there. We never know how the Russian leader’s fantasies develop.