Putin's 'nuclear' option against Ukraine should not be too lightly dismissed

It is rather timely that Pope Francis, as reported by Francis X. Rocca (left), 

"Pope Francis on Wednesday issued his strongest condemnation to date of Russia’s war against Ukraine, linking it to Joseph Stalin‘s 1930s terror famine, which the pontiff described as genocide." (Wall Street Journal : 23 November 2022) (my emphasis)

Confirming Pope Francis's description of Putin's war with Ukraine as "genocide", Holly Ellyatt (right) reports that,

"Prominent supporters of Russian President Vladimir Putin are using increasingly “genocidal rhetoric” when discussing and demonizing Ukrainians, analysts note, with some pro-war commentators cheering the concept of the “liquidation” of the modern state of Ukraine." (CNBC : 25 November 2022) (my emphasis)

She goes on to further report that,

"The rhetoric [used by Putin's 'glove puppet', President Dmitry Medvedev] to characterize Ukraine and Ukrainians has also become increasingly dehumanizing; this week he characterized officials within Kyiv’s government as “cockroaches” (because they wanted to retake Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula illegally annexed by Russia in 2014) while he used the term “grunting pigs” earlier in November." (ibid Holly Ellyatt)

Putin's current "Iranian doodlebug" onslaught against the infratructure of Ukraine, especially targetting Ukraine's electricity and water infrastructure, simply underscores the "genocidal" nature of his war with Ukraine.

In the words of Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk (right),

"Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk told the BBC's World Tonight programme: "Terrorist Russia has started an energy war against us, it's aim is to create a massive humanitarian crisis. The biggest challenge for us is the most vulnerable categories - elderly people, women with children and the sick in hospitals." (Jaroslav Lukiv : BBC News : 24 November 2022) (my emphasis)

And as reported by BBC News,

"President Volodymyr Zelensky has accused Russia of "crimes against humanity" after a new missile barrage caused blackouts across Ukraine.

He told the UN Security Council via videolink that the Russian "formula of terror" had forced "millions of people to stay without energy supplies, without heating, without water" in sub-zero cold." (BBC News : 24 November 2022) (my emphasis)

BBC News : 24 November 2022 : YouTube

What Putin's generals did to Grozny in Chechnya (1999 - 2000) and Allepo in Syria (2011 - to date) is now being done by Putin to the whole of Ukraine!

Sky News : 25 November 2022

This Putin playbook will not be as easy to implement as it was in the case of Grozny or Allepo.

As reported by Stephen Losey (left),

"The Pentagon said it will send Ukraine up to $400 million in artillery ammunition, weapons and supplies in its latest drawdown package to help the nation defend itself against Russia.
...
It also includes 150 heavy machine guns with thermal imagery sights that Ukraine could use to shoot down Russian drones, the Pentagon said, as well as 10,000 120mm mortar rounds and additional munitions for National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile Systems, or NASAMS, air defense systems developed by Norway’s Kongsberg Defence and Aerospace and U.S. firm Raytheon Technologies." (ArmyTimes : 23 November 2022) (my emphasis)

Added to which, Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak (right) said,

"Poland has asked Germany to hand over the Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine, which Berlin had previously promised to deploy on the Polish-Ukrainian border.
...
"After more Russian missile attacks, I turned to the German side with the request that the Patriot batteries offered to Poland be transferred to Ukraine and deployed on the western border. This will protect Ukraine from further casualties and blackouts and increase security on our eastern border," Blaszczak wrote [on Twitter]. (Ukrinform : 24 November 2022) (my emphasis) (cf also: PolskieRadio: 21 November 2022)

And the German response?

As to be expected, and as reported by Maciej Martewicz and Arne Delfs,

"Germany’s defense minister dismissed a surprise request from Poland to station surface-to-air Patriot missiles in western Ukraine, saying such a deployment would have to be agreed by NATO.

German Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht (left) told reporters in Berlin Thursday after talks with her Estonian counterpart. “Any proposal that deviates from that must now be discussed with NATO and with our allies.” (Yahoo (Bloomberg article) : 24 November 2022) (my emphasis)

As former British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, recently stated,

"Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has accused France and Germany of misjudging the harbingers of war in Ukraine. In an interview with the Portuguese branch of the US broadcaster CNN , he said that France had denied a possible invasion and Germany was in favor of a quick end and a quick defeat of Ukraine .
...

Germany under Chancellor Olaf Scholz took the position early on that while a war would be catastrophic, it would be better if it ended quickly and Ukraine gave up, Johnson claimed. It was economic reasons that led to the Chancellor's conclusion, and he was unable to support that." (t-online : 23 November 2022) (my emphasis) (cf also: Rob Picheta: CNN : 23 November 2022)

Whilst Germany, yet again, is dragging its feet in confronting Putin, John Chalmers reports that,

"Europe's biggest cities will donate power generators and transformers to help Ukrainians get through the harsh winter ahead, as part of a drive launched on Wednesday.
...
The cities will be urged to provide generators to keep energy running at essential facilities in war-buffeted Ukraine, including hospitals, schools, water supply facilities, relief centres, shelters, and mobile phone masts." (Reuters : 23 November 2022) (my emphasis)

And as now reported by Ciaran McGrath,

"Vladmir Putin is telling his military commanders Russia need to deploy five million troops in order to triumph in Ukraine. A document doing the rounds in military and political circles in Moscow entitled "Conclusions of the war with NATO in Ukraine" has highlighted the vast challenges now facing Russia." (Express : 25 November 2022) (my emphasis)

whilst his TV pundits continue to urge nuclear strikes against Ukraine.

Putin's dream of a "Novorossiya" is now turning into his nightmare of failure.

Everything that he throws at Ukraine is met by the fierce determination of the people of Ukraine to push his army back into Russia and regain ALL of Ukraine's territory now occupied by his Russian forces.

The constant 'fist-waving of the deployment of the nuclear option' against Ukraine by his TV pundits should not be too lightly dismissed.

(to be continued)