NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that in the future the alliance intends to publicize its own nuclear capabilities with the idea that this display will become a deterrent against Russia, DPA reported.
"It is important to talk more about nuclear deterrence with our societies to ensure that they understand how it contributes to our overall security," Rutte told the German newspaper "Welt".
"When Russia uses dangerous and reckless nuclear rhetoric, our societies must know that there is no need to panic, because NATO has a strong nuclear deterrent and can keep the peace and to deter aggression," he added.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stressed the potential of Russian nuclear weapons to dissuade the West from providing stronger support to Kiev. A little over two weeks ago, Russia began a large-scale exercise of its strategic nuclear forces, which is being held in parallel with ongoing NATO nuclear exercises in Europe, DPA noted.
According to Mark Rutte, NATO's nuclear deterrent is the ultimate guarantee of collective security. He stressed the importance of NATO's nuclear deterrent remaining reliable, safe, secure and effective.
"Putin must know that a nuclear war can never be won and should never be fought", Rutte added.
He concluded that NATO's nuclear exercise had been successful and that this gave absolute confidence in the reliability of the alliance's nuclear deterrent. "This sent a clear signal to any adversary that NATO can and will protect all allies from all threats," the alliance's secretary general stressed.
The United States, France and Britain are the only countries in the 32-member alliance that possess nuclear weapons. Russia is the world's largest nuclear power. According to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, Russia currently possesses the largest number of officially confirmed nuclear weapons, namely over 5,500 nuclear warheads, while the United States has 5,044, DPA also notes.