Russia-US nuclear war is no fantasy, says Kremlin ally | GZERO World

The Russia-Ukraine conflict did not start out of the blue, it has a long history, says Dmitri Trenin.

Russia has the world's largest arsenal of nuclear weapons. But from Moscow's perspective, the atomic deterrent was not enough to keep the US and its NATO allies from backing Ukraine against Russia.

That was unexpected since the Kremlin views this as a Western intervention in a proxy war that is strategically vital to Russia, Dmitri Trenin, an ex-Russian intelligence colonel and former director of the Carnegie Moscow Center, tells Ian Bremmer on GZERO World.

For Trenin, all nuclear bets are off if the trajectory of the conflict leads to direct military conflict between Russia and NATO.

"If there is such a collision, then (...) a nuclear exchange between Russia and the United States may not be seen as a fantasy," he says. "This is my worry."

Watch the full interview with Trenin in the season premiere of GZERO World with Ian Bremmer's sixth season, airing on US public television nationwide. Check local listings.

#GZEROWorld #Russiav#NuclearWar

[gemeinschaftsgeful]

Ukraine was doing just fine as an independent nation before Russia invaded it nine years ago.

[jdotsalter]

There will be no exchange. Putin can launch a nuke and NATO can easily mop up the Russian army with conventional weapons in a week. Russia is struggling against Ukraine, imagine if NATO air sea and land forces got involved.

[gemeinschaftsgeful]

Wow Gzero you put on a pro Kremlin speaker to make nuclear threats of behalf of Russia.

[philippheinicke]

A rather civil argumentation of an absurd position. Opposite style from Medwedew but not much difference in the nuclear saber rattling. Everyone has his task in the russian regime and your guest fulfilled his to do list for today by spreading this narrativ via your channel.

[HazardDynamo]

One of the stupid theses of Russian propaganda is that the majority of Ukrainians are against joining NATO. Although in reality everything is the opposite. Interestingly, before the war in Georgia (2008), everything was the other way around, and then this support began to grow, and after the annexation of Crimea, this was the main idea along with joining the EU. And as of now, this is a vitally important thing, there are no other options. Russia itself did everything to make Ukraine aspire to join NATO.

[paulonunes]

Russia is having a hard time with Ukraine, now imagine with NATO!?

Then there are two questions:
In what operational condition is Russian nuclear arsenal?
Would Russian officers comply with an order to start a nuclear war when to defend Moscow where the chechens the ones that answered the call...?

Time is on Ukraine's side now and we will probably get closer to know the answers to these questions in the near future.

[mirkobriganti]

With or without nuclear exchange or escalation, a direct military clash between NATO and the Russian federation would be a major global catastrophe. Not to mention what it would mean for the European continent.

[rositasultana]

What a defeatist…big thumbs down for the guest.
Thumbs up for the video, we have to hear all the cuckoo of the coco puffs…old grump.

[poulha]

Trenin is of course right that Russia sees Ukraine as a strategic vital interest. But nuclear escalation is not a strategy, because they fear the consequenses as much as we do: Second strike capability still prevails. You need to get into the head of decision makers to learn whether they will escalate or back down. And this is individual psychology, not a strategy.

[dipro]

We are sleepwalking towards a post-nuclear weapons guaranteed peace world.

[salstrom]

I have a whole life ahead of me I want to live, please don’t ruin it for me.

[kshen]

Just because of nuclear weapons Soviet Union and USA had luckily no war, after WWII China and USA had actually two big serious direct wars: Korea War and Vietnam War. USA army was armed to teeth and those American veterans might know what kind of bitter taste of fighting with "poor" Chinese army.