Across Russia, 40 million civilians and military personnel just finished up emergency drills aimed at preparing the general population for nuclear or chemical-weapons attacks, The Wall Street Journal’s Thomas Grove reports.
Video shows Russian civilians practicing along with officials and workers in hazardous-material protective suits.
But as troubling as the largest civil defense drills since the height of the Cold War have been, the steps Russia has taken to improve its offensive nuclear capabilities likely overshadow them.
Since the breakdown of US-Russia talks on the fate of Syria, Russia has pulled out of a nuclear-nonproliferation agreement with the US, citing “unfriendly acts” by America. It has moved nuclear-capable missiles to its European enclave of Kaliningrad, and threatened “asymmetrical” and “painful” actions against the US should it decide to impose sanctions on Russia over Syria.