Moscow (Times Of Ocean)- Russian President Vladimir Putin attended a funeral with a suspected nuclear briefcase amid fears of assassination, according to reports.
A Moscow cathedral held services on Friday for Russian ultranationalist politician Vladimir Zhirinovsky, who died this week after a long illness. Putin laid a bouquet of red roses near the coffin and bowed his head for a moment of silence.
He was accompanied by a man carrying a briefcase, which is believed to contain the Russian missile launch apparatus.
Merca said Putin carries the nuclear briefcase everywhere. The briefcase is under 24-hour surveillance and has a personal key code.
The report comes almost two months after President Putin announced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He stated anyone who “tries to stand in our way” will suffer consequences “such as you have never known in your history.”
Moreover, he put Russian nuclear forces on high alert, citing “aggressive statements” by NATO and tough financial sanctions.
“Western countries aren’t only taking unfriendly actions against our country in the economic sphere, but top officials from leading NATO members made aggressive statements regarding our country,” Putin said in televised comments.
Putin’s order was not immediately clear in its practical implications. Nuclear forces based on land, sea, and submarines are typically on alert and ready for combat at all times, but aircraft able to carry nuclear weapons are not.
The U.S. might feel compelled to respond in kind if Putin enables his bombers to carry nuclear weapons, or if he orders more ballistic missile submarines into the sea, according to nuclear analyst Hans Kristensen at the Federation of American Scientists.