Soon after Russia invaded Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin said he was moving his “deterrent forces” – meaning nuclear weapons – to “combat ready” status.
This has raised fears that Moscow could use “tactical” nuclear weapons – not an all-out nuclear war, but still a dramatic development.
Tactical nuclear weapons are those which could be used over relatively short distances.
This distinguishes them from “strategic” nuclear weapons. In the Cold War, these were the bombs which the two superpowers, the US and Soviet Union, could launch over long distances at each other’s homeland.
