A chilling warning has been issued by Ukraine about Russia sparking nuclear conflict during the war between the two countries.
Ukraine 's military chief, Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, has claimed that there is a direct risk of Russian troops using tactical nuclear weapons in 'certain circumstances'.
The army 's commander in chief said that - with the war being in its sixth month now - the possibility of a 'limited' nuclear conflict means that the prospect of World War 3 cannot be completely ruled.
In article published by state news agency Ukrinform, Zaluzhnyi said: "There is a direct threat of the use, under certain circumstances, of tactical nuclear weapons by the Russian Armed Forces.
"Battles on the territory of Ukraine have already demonstrated how much the Russian Federation neglects the issues of global nuclear security even in a conventional war.
"In particular, since July 2022, Russian troops have set up a military base at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, deploying heavy artillery, including BM-30 Smerch multiple rocket launchers, on its premises."
He continued: "It is hard to imagine that even nuclear strikes will allow Russia to break Ukraine's will to resist. But the threat that will emerge for the whole of Europe cannot be ignored.
"The possibility of direct involvement of the world's leading powers in a 'limited' nuclear conflict, bringing closer the prospect of World War 3, cannot be completely ruled out either."
The military chief went on to add that any such provocation would unleash utter chaos all around the world, saying: "Any Russian attempts at practical steps in the use of tactical nuclear weapons must be pre-empted by employing the entire arsenal of means at the disposal of world powers.
"After all, starting from this moment, the Russian Federation will become not only a threat to the peaceful coexistence of Ukraine, its neighbours, and a number of European countries but also a truly global-scale terrorist state."
In other developments, Russian President, Vladimir Putin, has today warned that he may threaten to halt all energy shipments to Europe.
The European Commission said it would propose a price cap on Russian gas to deprive Moscow of revenue and hold down energy costs as Europe fears hardship this winter.
In response, Putin is threatening to halt all supplies if it took such a step, adding: "We will not supply gas, oil, coal, heating oil - we will not supply anything" if that occurs, he said.
Europe usually imports about 40% of its gas and 30% of its oil from Russia.
Furthermore the tyrant also suggested restricting a U.N.-brokered deal for Ukrainian grain exports via the Black Sea.
In a speech at the economic forum in Russia's Far East region yesterday, Putin said the accord was delivering grain, fertiliser and other food to the European Union and Turkey rather than to poor countries - which he said was its original goal.
"It may be worth considering how to limit the export of grain and other food along this route," the tyrant said.
Meanwhile, yesterday heavy fighting was reported on three fronts of Ukraine: in the north, near the city of Kharkiv; in the east, in the industrial Donbas region of mines and factories; and in the south, in the Kherson region.
In the south particularly, Ukraine mounted a counteroffensive to try to retake formerly-seized territory by the Russians - which happened early on in the war.
In a video address last night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reported "good news" from the Kharkiv region east of Kyiv.
He said that some settlements had been recaptured from Russian forces, citing "the extremely successful hits in areas where the occupiers are concentrated", and said Ukrainian artillery had made successful strikes against Russian forces in the south.
Additionally, The Pentagon said Ukraine's forces were making "slow but meaningful progress" on the battlefield and were doing better in the south than Russia.
Ukraine's military command for the southern district said its forces killed 108 Russian soldiers, and destroyed 37 pieces of military hardware on Wednesday amid Russian shelling and air strikes.
