Russia Nuclear Weapons: How many nuclear weapons does Russia have

Russia News: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday that Russia can also use nuclear weapons if its sovereignty or territorial integrity is threatened. This is not the first time Putin has threatened the West with Russian nuclear weapons. After all, how many nuclear weapons does Russia have, which frightens the US and its Western allies? 

Russia is said to have the world's largest stockpile of nuclear weapons. Most of these are from the era of communist rule.

According to a Reuters report, the Federation of American Scientists (FAS) estimates that Moscow has about 5,580 nuclear weapons. About 1,200 of these have been retired but most are safe. About 4,380 are kept for use by long-range strategic launchers and short-range strategic nuclear forces. 

The FAS says that of the stockpiled weapons, 1,710 are deployed tactical weapons - about 870 on land-based ballistic missiles, about 640 on submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and about 200 on heavy bomber bases.

These figures mean that Russia can destroy the world many times over. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union had a maximum of 40,000 nuclear weapons, while the US had a maximum of 30,000 nuclear weapons.

According to the report, the Russian President is the final decision maker on the use of Russian nuclear weapons.

Will Russia increase its stockpile of nuclear weapons?

According to Reuters, the US said in its 2022 Nuclear Status Review that Russia and China are expanding and modernizing their nuclear forces. At the same time, Washington will adopt an approach based on arms control to prevent a costly arms race.

FAS said in its 2024 analysis of Russian forces, "Russia's threatening rhetoric remains of great concern, as Russia's nuclear arsenal and operations have seen little change since our 2023 projections beyond ongoing modernization."

"In the future, however, the number of weapons assigned to the Russian Strategic Forces may increase, as single-weapon missiles will be replaced by multiple-weapon missiles," the FAS said.

' We have a nuclear doctrine '

Putin, speaking to senior editors of international news agencies in St Petersburg on Wednesday, made clear under what circumstances Moscow could use nuclear weapons.

The Russian President said, 'For some reason, the West believes that Russia will never use it. But we have a nuclear doctrine, that says that if someone's actions threaten our sovereignty and territorial integrity, we consider it possible for us to use all means. This should not be taken lightly, superficially.'