Vladamir Putin has ordered drills involving Russia’s nuclear forces in which they simulated a massive strike on the West. The barrage of ballistic and cruise missiles fired in the “Operation Thunder” exercises comes as a US official has warned of “troubling developments” involving Russia’s nuclear arsenal.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the drills – codenamed “Grom” or “Thunder” – simulated a massive nuclear strike by Russia in retaliation for an attack on its soil. Video released by the Russian-military run Zvezda website showed armed forces personnel in front of computers launching a Yars ballistic missile.

Other footage showed a Sineva intercontinental ballistic missile being fired from a submarine in the Barents Sea and a TU-95 bomber that launched cruise missiles. The Kremlin said that all tasks set for the exercise were fulfilled and all the missiles that were test-fired reached their designated targets.

The United States has said that Moscow informed it about the drills in advance. The Russian drills come as NATO is rehearsing its own use of US nuclear bombs based in Europe in its annual “Steadfast Noon” war games.

Putin observed the annual exercise remotely as Russia rehearsed its response to a nuclear attack – with drills involving nuclear submarines, strategic bombers, and ballistic missiles. It comes amid growing fears the tyrant could detonate a nuke as Moscow continues to wildly swing its nuclear saber. The tyrant is becoming increasingly frustrated as his troops have been hit with a series of disastrous defeats across the frontline in Ukraine.

There are concerns that if Vlad finds himself boxed into a corner, he could resort to using nuclear weapons. Putin has repeatedly raised the specter of using the weapons – and it’s feared he could potentially be lining up a test in the Black Sea.

A senior US official has now warned of “new, troubling development involving Russia’s nuclear arsenal”, reports the New York Times. The source declined to provide any further details. Officials in America have reported no movement of any of Russia’s 2,000 tactical nuclear weapons. Nukes have not been used in a war since the US dropped two bombs on Japan to end World War 2. (SOURCE)