American citizens are being warned to get out of Russia as Western leaders brace for a massive escalation by Vladimir Putin.
They fear the tyrant president is preparing for a strike inside Ukraine or an attack against western interests such as maritime communications cables.
The US embassy in Moscow has told all citizens to leave Russia immediately by any means necessary and warned Putin will not respect dual nationality.
There are fears dual nationals could be drafted into the war in Ukraine.
Officials said: “Russia may refuse to acknowledge US nationals’ dual citizenship, deny access to consular assistance, prevent their departure and conscript dual nationals for military service.”
Putin intends to land grab four contested regions following his sham polls in eastern Ukraine but is running out of military options.
One fear is a tactical nuclear strike west of Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia creating a radiation dead zone to stop Ukraine’s fightback.
It is also possible Putin has used his mobilisation of 300,000 ill-trained reservists to con the west into concentrating on Ukraine.
One security source said: “Putin has almost run out of options which makes a tactical nuclear strike possible.
"It is possible he believes this will be enough as a show of intent to get the west to back off, create a dead zone to halt the Ukrainian counter-offensive and claim victory in the east.
“He could dress this up as the original intention of his ‘special military operation’ even though it may have cost Russia 60,000 dead soldiers plus the deaths in Ukraine.
“Another possibility is an attack on the communication cables between the UK and America, many of which are European links to the States.
“Smashing these internet communication links could be very damaging to world financial markets, even though there are contingencies. And there is the possibility of more cyber attacks.”
Get all the latest news sent to your inbox. Sign up for the free Mirror newsletter
Tony Brenton, a former British ambassador to Russia, has said: “If the choice for Russia is losing and Putin falling, or some kind of nuclear demonstration, I wouldn’t bet they wouldn’t go for the nuclear demonstration.”
There is growing opposition to Putin after his announcement last week of a mobilisation, with an estimated 250,000 men having fled to avoid the draft.
It comes on top of 400,000 thought to have left in the immediate aftermath of the invasion in February, including many of the country’s best-educated.
And the Russian economy has been smashed by sanctions.
