Putin not bluffing, emphasises Russian President

On Wednesday, Putin made a thinly veiled reference to nuclear weapons and emphasised that he was not bluffing.

When the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, we will certainly use all the means at our disposal to protect Russia and our people, he said. It is not a bluff. The Russian leader's rhetoric has been used too many times, even before his invasion of Ukraine, according to analysts.

The reason Putin has to say that he isn't bluffing is because he's bluffed so many times before, said Mr Giles.

The effect of these nuclear threats or these half-threats is thin as he's resorted to them so often, so everyone is interpreting this as another bluff. The experts stopped short of dismissing the possibility of a nuclear response from Moscow further into the war if Russia sees its red lines crossed.

Putin has laid out two conditions that could engender a nuclear response. One of the goals is for NATO troops to enter Ukraine and engage Russians directly. If Ukrainian forces push into the Russian homeland, the other is, said Mr Cancian.

Ukraine's presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak has called for a stern rebuke to Moscow for Putin's threats.

The Russian Federation should clearly say to the Russian Federation: If you go down the path of using nuclear weapons, you will be forced to strike the places from which nuclear weapons were launched against other countries, Podolyak told CNA's correspondent Julia Chapman.

If the world does not fix this, then of course the Russian Federation and any other nuclear power will be able to say that they have the 'right of the strong' to use it, to seize foreign territory and use nuclear weapons for its protection - well, let's say it's unprovoked expansion, said Mr Podolyak.