Financial Times Reveals Secret Efforts to Dissuade Putin from Nuclear Use in Ukraine

An investigation by the Financial Times has uncovered secret efforts in 2022, led by an American lawyer and a banker with the help of a former German spy, to contain the risk of Russian nuclear escalation at the start of the Ukraine war. A Russian businessman close to the Kremlin reportedly warned that President Vladimir Putin might use tactical nuclear weapons. An unofficial channel of communication was established, delivering a message from the United States to Putin, assuring him that Washington was not seeking to topple his government or destroy Russia. The day after receiving this message, Putin announced that nuclear weapons would offer no political or military benefit for Russia.