Putin has vowed to use all means of destruction available to Russia if the West supplies nuclear weapons to Kyiv in his strongest threat against nuking Ukraine yet.

The Russian President asked on Thursday: ‘If the country which we are essentially at war with now becomes a nuclear power, what do we do?’

It comes after the New York Times reported last week that a number of unidentified Western officials had suggested outgoing US President Joe Biden could give Ukraine nuclear weapons before he leaves office.  

‘In this case, we will use all, I want to emphasise this, precisely all means of destruction available to Russia,’ Putin continued during the press conference in Astana, Kazakhstan.

‘Everything: we will not allow it. We’ll be watching their every move.

‘If officially someone were to transfer something, then that would mean a violation of all the non-proliferation commitments they have made,’ Putin concluded.

Putin also said it was practically impossible for Ukraine to produce a nuclear weapon, but that it might be able to make some kind of ‘dirty bomb’, a conventional bomb laced with radioactive material in order to spread contamination. 

In that case, Russia would respond appropriately, he said.

Russia has repeatedly said, without providing evidence, that Ukraine might use such a device.

It comes as Putin made a direct threat to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as he warned Moscow could soon begin to strike ‘decision-making centres’ in Kyiv if Ukraine continues to hit targets in Russia with US and UK missiles.