THE CHAIN OF COMMAND FOR A POTENTIAL RUSSIAN NUCLEAR STRIKE

President Vladimir Putin has once again promoted Russia’s nuclear might against the backdrop of the Ukraine conflict, saying on Wednesday that a new ballistic missile system should make Moscow’s enemies stop and think.

Announcing Russia’s invasion of Ukraine eight weeks ago, Putin warned the West that any attempt to get in its way “will lead you to such consequences that you have never encountered in your history”. Days later, he ordered Russia’s nuclear forces to be put on high alert.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said last month that “the prospect of nuclear conflict, once unthinkable, is now back within the realm of possibility.”

Here is how Russia’s chain of command would work in the event of a nuclear weapon launch.

Who decides to launch Russian nuclear weapons?