Addressing Putin’s Nuclear Threat: Thinking Like the Cold War KGB Officer That He Was

Russian President Vladimir Putin seen during the plenary session of the Commonwealth of the Independent States (CIS) Summit, on October 14, 2022 in Astana, Kazakhstan. The close-up shows his brows slightly furrowed and his left hand to his mouth in a serious thinking pose. (Photo by Contributor/Getty Images)

Addressing Putin’s Nuclear Threat: Thinking Like the Cold War KGB Officer That He Was

To assess if he will resort to such weapons, a former CIA officer considers three fundamentals that may guide the Russian leader’s decisions.