Recent Developments in Russian Nuclear Forces

In December 2023, in his annual speech before the Russian Defense Ministry Board, President Vladimir Putin stated that, “Given the changing nature of military threats and the emergence of new military and political risks, the role of the nuclear triad, which ensures the balance of power, the strategic balance of power in the world, has significantly increased.” According to the Putin regime’s mythology, recently echoed in state-run Sputnik News, it is only Russia’s strategic nuclear forces that “Saved Russia From Being Erased From [the] World Map.”