Threat to use nuclear weapons could force negotiation, says political scientist

President Vladimir Putin ordered his army on Sunday that deterrent forces – which include nuclear weapons – be placed on combat alert. The measure comes on the same day that a conversation between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations was agreed.

For the professor of Political Science at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Fabiano Mielniczuk, in an interview with CNNPutin’s threat may be a strategy to force negotiation.

“It is more advantageous for Russia to use this nuclear threat card precisely to force a negotiation, to make it very clear to the rest of the world that Russia is serious about what it is doing in Ukraine,” he said.

As for the conversation between the two countries, which should take place on the morning of this Monday (28), Mielniczuk believes that it should not be enough to declare the end of the war.

“It is possible to talk about the beginning of negotiations, now the end of the negotiation is something that is a little distant on the horizon. Negotiations can be quick if Ukraine accepts an armistice and accepts the discussion of the country’s neutral status and demilitarization, from the Russians’ point of view,” he said.

Regarding the sanctions applied to Russia, the expert commented that the withdrawal of the country’s banks from the Swift system, the most important means of international transactions, is a powerful, but “dangerous” move. This is because the consequences can be serious for Western countries, especially given their dependence on Russian oil and gas.

For Russia, in addition to the negative consequences, the sanctions could lead the country to “deepen its relations with China in a way never seen before”. The political scientist explained that the Russians have their own payment system that should begin to be more used and improved with the help of the Chinese.

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