Biden: Americans should not worry about nuclear war

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US President Joe Biden said on Monday that Americans should not be concerned about a nuclear war after Moscow raised its nuclear deterrent amid a barrage of Western sanctions against Russia.

Commenting on whether Americans should be concerned about the outbreak of a nuclear war, Biden said, "No." 

Earlier in the day, White House officials stated that the US sees no reason to change its nuclear alert levels at this time, which Press Secretary Jen Psaki reiterated during her press briefing.

"We are assessing President Putin's directive and at this time, we see no reasons to change our own alert levels," Psaki stressed.

The Russian President Vladimir Putin requested that Russia's nuclear deterrent forces be put on "special combat duty mode" on Sunday, after divulging that officials of leading NATO nations had indulged in "making aggressive statements about our country," in addition to the sanctions imposed on Russia by the US, Europe, and other Western allies.

Moscow's ministry of foreign affairs informed the international community the operation in Ukraine was not the beginning of a war, but rather an attempt at curbing one after the west bombarded the situation with condemnations.

According to Psaki, the US and the NATO alliance's 30 members have no "appetite or desire" for conflict with Russia. 

"Provocative rhetoric like this regarding nuclear weapons is dangerous, adds to the risk of miscalculation, should be avoided and we'll not indulge in it”, she claimed.

On Monday, Biden spoke with US allies and partners, as a US official stated that nuclear war should never be fought. Leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, Romania, and the United Kingdom joined Biden on the call, as did NATO's chief and top European Union officials.

According to a White House official, Russia and the United States have long agreed that the use of nuclear weapons would have disastrous consequences.

“A nuclear war cannot be won, and must never be fought," the White House official said.

The White House also stated that Russia has signed joint statements stating that a nuclear war cannot be won and should never be fought.

On the fifth day of Russia’s special operation in Ukraine, Russian and Ukrainian officials met on the Belarusian border to discuss a ceasefire.

The US barred Americans from engaging in any transactions involving Russia's central bank on Monday.

US President Joe Biden announced on Friday that his country's sanctions on Russia have been expanded to include sanctions against President Vladimir Putin and his Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, as well as a travel ban for the two leaders.

The first wave of sanctions targeted four Russian banks, cutting off more than half of Russia's technology imports and oligarchs.

Gazprom, the Russian energy giant, and 12 other large corporations will be unable to raise funds on Western financial markets.

Exports of defense and aeronautics technology to Russia are also blocked, and sanctions will be imposed on 24 Belarusian persons and organizations accused of supporting and assisting Russia.

Russia's advancement into Ukraine has prompted a wave of sanctions as global leaders seek to ramp up pressure on the Kremlin.

It is worth mentioning that Russia has for months been warning of the threat posed against it by NATO's attempts to expand eastward, which happened simultaneously with an increase in NATO military activity along Russia's borders, and batches of lethal weapons being sent to Ukraine, prompting Russia to request security guarantees from the West, which Washington failed to provide.