President Duda on Putin's new nuclear doctrine: paper can endure anything

The revised doctrine, signed by Putin, broadens the conditions under which Russia could deploy nuclear weapons. Previously, nuclear use was justified solely by threats to the existence of the Russian state. Now, a wider array of "military threats" could serve as a basis for deployment.

Asked during his visit to Jordan about the significance of the updated doctrine, President Duda dismissed the threats as a recurring tactic.

"Russia threatens not for the first and certainly not for the last time. Let me put it this way: he signed it? Fine, paper can endure anything," said Duda.

He emphasized the broader importance of holding Russian imperialism accountable. "It is critical that Ukraine survives as a sovereign and independent state and defends itself against Russian aggression. From the perspective of Central Europe’s and Poland’s security, it’s vital that Russian imperialism is decisively crushed in Ukraine," he stated.

Duda warned against the dangers of Russia emerging victorious or gaining territorial advantages from the war. "Russia must not come out of this war with its head held high or with territorial gains at Ukraine’s expense," he added.

Duda further characterized Russia as a voracious aggressor with imperial ambitions, indifferent to the loss of its own soldiers. "Russia allows hundreds of thousands of its soldiers to die on the front lines. But worse, it’s a greedy beast, seeking to seize and subjugate territories and nations," he said.

"Unfortunately, we are all concerned, especially here in Central Europe, particularly those who have experienced occupation in their history, that Russian imperialism is simply greedy and relentless. If it is not decisively curbed, simply defeated, it will continue seeking to seize new territories - and, of course, no one intends to allow that," President Andrzej Duda emphasized.

"We must pursue a consistent and firm policy of opposing Russia and supporting Ukraine," he stressed.

President Andrzej Duda stated that "the heroism of Ukrainians halted the Russian onslaught, followed to a great extent by our support." He reminded that Poland was the first country to send arms to Ukraine.

"If it weren't for Poland, for our goodwill toward Ukraine and our determination to assist Ukraine, I don't know if Ukraine would have been able to defend itself," the president remarked.

Polish President Andrzej Duda hailed U.S. President Joe Biden’s decision to permit Ukraine to use U.S.-supplied long-range missiles for strikes deep into Russian territory. Duda described the move as highly significant and potentially transformative in the ongoing conflict.

Duda highlighted the capabilities of the American ATACMS missiles, which have a range of up to 300 kilometers.

"While these missiles cannot target any major Russian cities, they can push Russian logistical support and rear positions over 300 kilometers away from the front lines. This significantly complicates any Russian offensive actions against Ukraine," Duda explained.

"This decision is indeed extremely significant, perhaps even groundbreaking. Whether it is truly a game-changer remains to be seen, but it is undoubtedly an enormously important step," Duda stated.

Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski also addressed the changes in Russia's nuclear doctrine during a press conference on Tuesday. He recalled that during the Cold War, NATO had a first-use nuclear doctrine. As he explained, this was based on the assumption that the Warsaw Pact had an advantage in conventional weapons and army size over the North Atlantic Alliance.

"So, if Vladimir Putin is lowering the threshold for using nuclear weapons, it could indicate that he has finally realized that Russia is militarily weaker than the West," the minister assessed.

Sikorski remarked that "this works differently in democracies than in autocracies." "Imagine a scenario where, for some reason, Vladimir Putin wants to use these weapons, and his subordinates respond: 'No, no, no, Mr. President, you can't do that because of the doctrine.'"