SOCHI, October 5. /TASS/. Russia's retaliatory strike following a nuclear attack by a potential aggressor will leave the enemy with no chances of survival, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a plenary session of the Valdai discussion club.
"I want to assure everyone that as of today the retaliation will be absolutely unacceptable for any potential aggressor. Starting from the moment a missile launch has been detected, no matter where it comes from - any point in the world's oceans or from any territory - there will follow a counter-attack, with so many missiles, so many hundreds of our missiles appearing in the air that no enemy will have a chance to survive."
The retaliatory strikes will be carried out "in several directions at once," Putin emphasized.
He recalled that in Russia's military doctrine there were two reasons for the possible use of nuclear weapons: an enemy nuclear attack on Russian territory, which had to be followed by a retaliatory strike.
"In practice, what this means is this: missiles are launched, our missile warning system detects them and warns that the target is the territory of Russia. All this happens in seconds, as everyone understands. Having realized that Russia is about to be hit, we, for our part, respond to this aggression," Putin explained.
The second reason, the president said, is a threat to the existence of the Russian state, even if only conventional weapons are used against the country.
Sergey Karaganov, one of the founders of the Valdai Club, professor emeritus, science doyen of the Department of World Economy and World Politics at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, and honorary chairman of the Presidium of the Council on Foreign and Defense Policy, asked Putin whether it was time to change the national nuclear doctrine. The head of state replied that he was well familiar with Karaganov's position and understood his feelings, but saw no need for such a move.