Biden Warns Russia Against Using Nuclear Weapons in Ukraine

President Joe Biden warned Russia’s leadership that they shouldn’t use nuclear weapons in Ukraine, saying that Moscow would face unspecified consequences.

“Don’t. Don’t. Don’t,” Biden told CBS’s “60 Minutes” in an excerpt of a rare one-on-one interview that was to be broadcast on Sept 18. He was responding to a question fielded by CBS reporter Scott Pelley about what he would say if Russian President Vladimir Putin was considering using nuclear weapons in the months-long conflict.

“You will change the face of war unlike anything since World War II,” Biden said.

When asked about what the United States might do in response, the president declined to elaborate.

“You think I would tell you if I knew exactly what it would be? Of course, I’m not gonna tell you. It’ll be consequential,” Biden said. “They’ll become more of a pariah in the world than they ever have been. And depending on the extent of what they do will determine what response would occur.”

Putin has said Moscow would respond more forcefully if its troops were put under further pressure, raising concerns among some Western officials that he could at some point use unconventional means like small nuclear or chemical weapons. However, Putin and other top Kremlin officials have repeatedly said Russia isn’t considering using nuclear weapons.

It comes amid reports of Ukrainian advances to retake territory that was seized by Russian forces earlier this year. Western defense officials have claimed Kyiv is gaining ground and has forced Russian troops back into Russia.

Ukrainian soldiers sit atop a tank in Izyum, Kharkiv Region, Ukraine, on Sept. 14, 2022. (Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images)

“It’s brilliant. I think it has really far-reaching implications potentially, but let’s be cautious,” United Kingdom Gen. Sir Richard Shirreff told Fox News. “They’ve achieved great success. They have to maintain their