Can Putin launch nukes at several NATO countries at once?

[AbsentmindedWoman]

Obviously, I am completely ignorant about everything to do with nuclear bombs but I have googled, and my tiny mind just doesn't grasp how this works.

In theory, could the UK/ US/ France/ Germany/ several other countries all suffer hits seconds apart?

Or would Putin have to choose one to be the first? How would he choose targets?

I understand the idea of mutual assured destruction if there are just two entities battling it out - but I don't understand how the dynamics of MAD work if it is Russia vs numerous countries, and Putin can only target one area at a time?

Is the nuclear capacity at his disposal really so huge he could take out many major cities and all military bases in Europe and the USA all at once?

I too remember the very scary ( to a ten year old) information ads that were on tv. I'm sure one was on just before sat morning kids tv started once. The most important thing I remember though was to hide under a table and drape a white sheet over it. To deflect the blast obviously

Fascinating thread. Has anyone put a call in to Lincoln Council for an updated sit rep?
I briefly (and disastrously) dated a French guy who was in the Navy on a nuclear submarine. Late 80s! I don't think I asked him enough about his work.

@shreddednips I'm with you on this.

While I'm sure several nukes could be launched at once, I don't believe 'thousands' could/would be.

I feel like you, it would start smaller. Maybe I am optimistic (got accused of that on another thread where people are talking about the whole UK being nuked etc). But my thoughts are if it starts to go nuclear, it would be start small, send a message, tell everyone if you don't get what you want then it's a full scale nuclear war where everyone dies.

And the West, I don't know. If Trump was in power I'd be really really scared right now, but Biden? Boris? The EU? OK so Boris is a pleb but he's not war hungry. I can't see any of them escalating it further with retaliation.

But like people say - you can't really predict willy waving I guess!

I think that someone will try and take Putin out, if he carries on like this much longer. The everyday normal Russian people don't like what he is doing now. never mind all the other countries views of his lunacy.

@SC215

Also, interestingly, a couple of weeks ago a Russian submarine with almost 200 nuclear warheads on board surfaced just off the US coastline. It had remained undetected in its journey under the Atlantic until then

Where's the source for this? Cos it sounds made up and nothing is coming up on Google. The whole point of nuclear submarines is for them to stay undetected, for months at a time.

You're quite right. That is a Russian source However I wouldn't be surprised if something of that nature did occur. They are increasingly difficult to detect via sonar and other methods and as PP have mentioned, can stay at sea for months on end.

I wonder if his family are telling him to stop being a prick? They obviously realise their dads batshit decisions affect them also?

5 o clock in the morning and I’m sat thinking of the texts I’d be sending my own dad in this situation 🤣

@shreddednips

Those Lincoln brochures are very funny 😆 I wonder what the purpose of them was? Because you don't really need to know that information if you're in a radioactive crater in the centre of Lincoln.

They had (maybe still do) quite a lefty council. Who would have been anti nukes. I imagine the leaflets were propaganda to try and encourage everyone to protest against nuclear warheads.

@1forAll74

I think that someone will try and take Putin out, if he carries on like this much longer. The everyday normal Russian people don't like what he is doing now. never mind all the other countries views of his lunacy.

I don’t think we can count on this - he’ll be extremely paranoid and very well protected. Look at Hitler surviving 6 years of war without being assassinated, despite multiple attempts.

[quote Dottdoo]@shreddednips I'm with you on this.

While I'm sure several nukes could be launched at once, I don't believe 'thousands' could/would be.

I feel like you, it would start smaller. Maybe I am optimistic (got accused of that on another thread where people are talking about the whole UK being nuked etc). But my thoughts are if it starts to go nuclear, it would be start small, send a message, tell everyone if you don't get what you want then it's a full scale nuclear war where everyone dies.

And the West, I don't know. If Trump was in power I'd be really really scared right now, but Biden? Boris? The EU? OK so Boris is a pleb but he's not war hungry. I can't see any of them escalating it further with retaliation.

But like people say - you can't really predict willy waving I guess![/quote]
That's not how nuclear engagement between NATO and Russia would work. At all. The whole point of Mutally Assured Destruction is that you can't do that, you have to launch as many as you can as fast as you can to hit as many targets as possible. The only chance you have of "winning" is to completely annihilate the other side before they hit back of
if you don't they will in retaliation, indeed as soon as they (and by they they mean either side) see one nuke heading their way they launch all theirs immediately. Neither side truly believes they can uses nukes without retaliation, they keep technology secret of course but there are supposedly automated systems on both sides that would retaliate without human input. It's difficult to know if that would realistically work but both sides were developing it previously I don't know if they were defunct during previous talks but it's irrelevant really as both sides would have reaon to believe it's potentially still in use.

That's why missiles defence shields and space launches are so controversial, it gives one side the theoretical advantage of being able to launch without retaliation.

The whole point of Mutally Assured Destruction is that you can't do that, you have to launch as many as you can as fast as you can to hit as many targets as possible.

Sure.

But a piece on the BBC did float the idea that Putin might consider a nuclear bomb in the North Sea?

So what would happen then?

Do like the Lincoln leaflets.. wonder if every town had one or a plan....trying to take mind off what's happening in life life. Seen film wargames. It's worth watching.

[quote Dottdoo]@shreddednips I'm with you on this.

While I'm sure several nukes could be launched at once, I don't believe 'thousands' could/would be.

I feel like you, it would start smaller. Maybe I am optimistic (got accused of that on another thread where people are talking about the whole UK being nuked etc). But my thoughts are if it starts to go nuclear, it would be start small, send a message, tell everyone if you don't get what you want then it's a full scale nuclear war where everyone dies.

And the West, I don't know. If Trump was in power I'd be really really scared right now, but Biden? Boris? The EU? OK so Boris is a pleb but he's not war hungry. I can't see any of them escalating it further with retaliation.

But like people say - you can't really predict willy waving I guess![/quote]
I'm not sure why your version is seen as optimistic BTW. Your version makes nuclear "war" (as in a protracted war using nuclear arms) possible. The other version (multiple missiles across multiple countries) makes it incredibly unlikely and in a lot of ways preferable for civilians within the affected countries (you'd just be dead if you live in a large population centre as opposed to fruitlessly struggling to survive under increasingly horrifying conditions).

@AbsentmindedWoman

The whole point of Mutally Assured Destruction is that you can't do that, you have to launch as many as you can as fast as you can to hit as many targets as possible.

Sure.

But a piece on the BBC did float the idea that Putin might consider a nuclear bomb in the North Sea?

So what would happen then?

I don't know I haven't seen it. I presume that would be because it's international waters? I'm not sure what the point would be so I can't answer.

This kind of thing (speculating on how nukes could be used) is a hobby for people and one of the things they like to kick around is how they could be used without provoking MAD. The North Sea thing sounds like their kind of speculation. I can't be arsed going on a search for the logic behind it, I've always been of the view that regardless of what they think up any nuclear engagement between NATO and Russia is all or nothing, its simply too risky to try a half measure.

@AbsentmindedWoman

The whole point of Mutally Assured Destruction is that you can't do that, you have to launch as many as you can as fast as you can to hit as many targets as possible.

Sure.

But a piece on the BBC did float the idea that Putin might consider a nuclear bomb in the North Sea?

So what would happen then?

Yeah I just Googled it. It was a cold war plan apparently aiming to wipe out infrastructure and causing a tsunami. I don't know why they would bother for all the reasons I have already stated. Which lever way you look at it that would be an attack on a nuclear armed NATO country. NATO and the UK aren't going sit round going "gosh they outwitted us because this isn't technically and attack and we can't retaliate!".

@danni0509

I wonder if his family are telling him to stop being a prick? They obviously realise their dads batshit decisions affect them also?

5 o clock in the morning and I’m sat thinking of the texts I’d be sending my own dad in this situation 🤣

I thought this. Imagine if it was your dad you would be like come on dad calm
Down

if you want to know what happens in a bomb, just look up Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

the Japanese never forget, the black rain is often depicted in anime and songs like ash like snow etc about the aftermath.

I don't know why they would bother for all the reasons I have already stated. Which lever way you look at it that would be an attack on a nuclear armed NATO country. NATO and the UK aren't going sit round going "gosh they outwitted us because this isn't technically and attack and we can't retaliate!".

@BettyBag Exactly.

Whichever way you slice and dice it, it would be firing a dart at a NATO country - at the very least - and triggering the ominous domino cascade.

if you want to know what happens in a bomb, just look up Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

No thanks. I read about this years ago, have since done my best to forget

But the mechanics and logistics and plotting out of game playing moves of current nuclear technology - I do find very interesting. In a detached way, of course, because it is sobering stuff.

However I am sharply cognisant that if I unfortunately do end up getting hit by a strike on New York, my best hope is instant vaporisation! I don't want to read lurid details about what it will do to human bodies who have the misfortune to not die instantly.

Putin YABVU..

Piggy eyed cunt.

I wonder if his family are telling him to stop being a prick? They obviously realise their dads batshit decisions affect them also?

Imagine if it was your dad you would be like come on dad calm Down

See, this only works if you have a dad who is a fairly decent character, at the very least.

Unfortunately, there are plenty of us who know all too well that the men who provided the sperm necessary for our conception would not hesitate to throw us under the bus if it suited them.

Well this is a cheery read. I was thinking about the idea of building a small stockpile but I think I'd now rather just die in the blast.

I'm assuming Bournemouth will be a key target too.

It was all fun fun fun in the 80s! Now we get to experience all that again. Lovely.

It really is like the 80’s again. Hopefully someone stops him first.

It really is like the 80’s again. Hopefully someone stops him first.

I was born mid 80s so don't remember anything political.

Is it worse now with constant rolling news channels and twitter etc?

@AbsentmindedWoman

It really is like the 80’s again. Hopefully someone stops him first.

I was born mid 80s so don't remember anything political.

Is it worse now with constant rolling news channels and twitter etc?

You mustn't have been born working class in a mining town then.

Comedians, music and people were very political in my childhood (80s). Thatcher, South Africa, Northern Ireland, USSR, strikes.

It won't be one missile it would be 1000s fired on both sides. I would rather be dead than be starving and eating radioactive rats. I don't believe it's going to happen but I hold my family that little bit tighter.