American expert Fried explains why Putin's nuclear blackmail will not affect West

He expressed this opinion on Espreso TV.

"In the fall of 2022, the Kremlin was also threatening nuclear use, and I believe that the United States sent a message to the Russians that if they used nuclear weapons against Ukraine, there would be a swift and devastating response from the United States, which I believe included a threat of military action. I believe that the United States told the Russians that if they used nuclear weapons against Ukraine, the United States would attack Russian positions inside Ukraine. Now, I don't know this for a fact, but I know that the Russians backed off. They take this seriously," Fried said.

The expert stressed that the West should not be fooled by Putin's nuclear threats.

"It may be that Putin is continuing to attempt to intimidate the United States and the West through these nuclear drills. We must not give in to that kind of pressure. Russia has nuclear weapons, and so do we," he added.

• ISW: The Kremlin continues to time its nuclear weapons rattling to coincide with major political discussions in the West. This is how Russia tries to influence foreign officials.
• On May 25, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said that Europe must learn to "play the escalation game" better to keep Putin guessing about its intentions.