[pjw] NEWS: US shows their diplomacy is about escalation, threatens Russia

[Peace and Justice Works]

Hello PJW supporters
I'm hoping to get a report back on Yvonne Simmons' memorial out in the 
next few days. While thinking about her example as a peacemaker, it's very 
troubling to read that the US responded to Russian statements about 
possible use of nuclear weapons by threatening "catastrophic 
consequences." This is not de-escalation.

Below is the news story from Business Insider.

Does anyone have a direct line to the White House to ask them to stop 
trying to ratchet up World War III?

dan handelman
peace and justice works

  https://news.yahoo.com/us-says-told-kremlin-russia-134445270.html
  Business Insider

US says it told the Kremlin that Russia will face 'catastrophic consequences'
if it uses tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine
    Jake Epstein, John Haltiwanger
    September 26, 2022, 9:44 AM
      * The US told Russia it will face "catastrophic consequences" if it
        uses nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
      * A Biden administration official said the White House recently
        warned the Kremlin of such a response.
      * Putin threatened last week to use nukes as he announced a partial
        military mobilization and other measures.

    The White House told Russia that it will face "catastrophic
    consequences" if it moves to use tactical or strategic nuclear weapons
    in Ukraine, a top Biden administration official said, after Russian
    President Vladimir Putin warned that the use of nuclear force was on
    the table.

    "We have communicated directly, privately and at very high levels to
    the Kremlin that any use of nuclear weapons will be met with
    catastrophic consequences for Russia," Jake Sullivan, the White House
    national security adviser, told CBS' 'Face The Nation' on Sunday.

    "The US and our allies will respond decisively, and we have been clear
    and specific about what that will entail," Sullivan said. "We have, in
    public, been equally clear, as a matter of principle, that the United
    States will respond decisively if Russia uses nuclear weapons and that
    we will continue to support Ukraine in its efforts to defend its
    country and defend its democracy."

    He added that although Putin has been waving the "nuclear card" at
    various points throughout the devastating seven-month-long war, the
    Biden administration is taking Putin's latest threats "deadly
    seriously."

    Russia maintains the world's largest nuclear arsenal, which consists of
    strategic nuclear weapons for use against targets like bases and cities
    and tactical nuclear weapons for battlefield use. With an operational
    nuclear triad, Russia has the ability to conduct nuclear strikes from
    land, air, and sea.

    Were Russia to use nuclear force, it would mark the first time nuclear
    weapons have been used since World War II, when the US dropped atomic
    bombs on the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

    Sullivan's remarks come after Putin delivered a rare televised address
    last week announcing partial military mobilization of the country's
    reservists and threatening to use nuclear weapons. The Russian leader
    baselessly accused Western countries of "nuclear blackmail" and said,
    without providing evidence, they are intentionally trying to provoke
    the Kremlin with escalated rhetoric surrounding their own nuclear
    weapons stockpiles.

    "To those who allow themselves to make such statements about Russia, I
    would like to remind you that our country also has various means of
    destruction, and for some components more modern than those of the NATO
    countries," Putin said.

    "And if the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will
    certainly use all the means at our disposal to protect Russia and our
    people," he said, adding that "this is not a bluff."

    Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in late February, Western officials
    have repeatedly warned that Putin could resort to the use of a nuclear
    weapon if he feels backed into a corner.

    "Given the potential desperation of President Putin and the Russian
    leadership, given the setbacks that they've faced so far, militarily,
    none of us can take lightly the threat posed by a potential resort to
    tactical nuclear weapons or low-yield nuclear weapons," CIA Director
    William Burns said in April.

    Some Russia experts have expressed similar concerns, particularly as
    the Russian military struggles in the face of a Ukrainian
    counteroffensive. Retired Brig. Gen. Kevin Ryan, a former defense
    attaché to Russia, told Insider in mid-September he's now "even more
    concerned" about nuclear-weapon use by Putin.

    But other Russia watchers are skeptical that Putin would use weapons of
    mass destruction.

    Ivo Daalder, a former US ambassador to NATO, told Insider last
    Wednesday, "Anyone who finds it necessary to say that he's not bluffing
    most likely is."

    Retired Adm. James Stavridis, a former supreme allied commander of
    NATO, told MSNBC on Friday that he's not losing "a lot of sleep" over
    Putin's nuclear threats. "I don't see Putin deciding to use a nuclear
    weapon," he said.

    Read the original article on Business Insider