Hypothetical Scenario - Should the West Retaliate if Russia Uses a Nuclear Strike on Ukraine?

[Uncrowned Guard]

The conversation I wish to initiate today is both grim and delicate but serves as a potent thought experiment in international relations, ethics, and military strategy. Given the contemporary geopolitical tensions surrounding Russia and Ukraine, I think it's pertinent to explore the following hypothetical scenario:

The Scenario

What if Russia were to use a nuclear strike on Ukraine? Should the Western nations retaliate, potentially triggering a global nuclear conflict with catastrophic consequences?

Points for Discussion

• Ethical Dilemma: Does the West have an ethical obligation to retaliate in the event of a nuclear strike, and would it change if the strike were on a NATO member vs. a non-NATO country like Ukraine?
• MAD (Mutually Assured Destruction): Given that a retaliatory strike could lead to a cycle of retaliation ending in global annihilation, is any retaliation justifiable?
• Alternative Responses: What other courses of action could the West take that would be effective but less apocalyptic?
• Global Ramifications: How would other nuclear-armed nations likely respond to such an event?
• Public Sentiment: What role should public opinion play in such a critical decision?

This topic requires the utmost respect and gravitas. Please ensure your comments reflect that.

[Fayble]

I think about this happening constantly.. I honestly don't know what I  would do. I suppose if I had a gun to my head and were being forced to make a decision, as the US president, I would gather a secret meeting with my NATO allies and come up with an assassination attempt. That or figure out a way to fire a nuclear missal back with the least amount of civilian casualties as possible. You'd also have to think what would Iran and China do, would they back Russia or do everything in their power to stop a nuclear Armageddon? I hope it doesn't come to this. I don't think the people in power want to die. I think they just want power, and lots of it! Putin has been calling our (America) bluffs for a long time so you never know what he's thinking. He's definitely a wild card and we have to take what he says seriously.

[Uncrowned Guard]

A large part of me worries about Putin's disconnect from the real world.  How much of it is simply making the nation look better by refusing to accept the poor performance in Ukraine and how much is a larger problem of being surrounded by people feeding him incorrect information to make themselves look good?  Can this system devolve into enough people saying they can successfully commit to a nuclear attack while also successfully defending themselves from a NATO retaliation?  

[ZandraJoi]

A nuclear strike won't just affect that area. Even if we don't "feel" it here, everything is connected in this world.

The USA needs better authority. Our military was one of honor & respect. Evoked healthy fear. Now, we are not taken seriously.

& I don't worry just about Putin. Other leaders have been a bit "off their rocker" as well. One is bad enough but if they align with each other & the rest of the world is divided over such trivial things, I don't have much hope for the human race.

 

 

[Uncrowned Guard]

3 hours ago, ZandraJoi said:

A nuclear strike won't just affect that area. Even if we don't "feel" it here, everything is connected in this world.

The USA needs better authority. Our military was one of honor & respect. Evoked healthy fear. Now, we are not taken seriously.

& I don't worry just about Putin. Other leaders have been a bit "off their rocker" as well. One is bad enough but if they align with each other & the rest of the world is divided over such trivial things, I don't have much hope for the human race.

 

 

That is a good point for the long term problems of nuclear war we may face.  More nations with nuclear arms are turning to extreme leadership and some are outright falling apart as nations to the point that some doubt all the weapons are even accounted for.  Even some nuclear weapons from the fall of the Soviet Union are rumored to be missing.  The future of humanity does seem like it will have a few rough patches coming up to say the least.

 

That also adds in the ability for a nation to pull the "I didn't do it" card out.  How would the world react to Russian made nuclear weapon being activated by a terrorist organization to destroy an enemy of Russia or even a US funded weapon being used by a nation that is collapsing to stop an uprising.  Things are likely to get even more complex as time moves on.

[ZandraJoi]

On 9/16/2023 at 1:47 PM, Uncrowned Guard said:

That is a good point for the long term problems of nuclear war we may face.  More nations with nuclear arms are turning to extreme leadership and some are outright falling apart as nations to the point that some doubt all the weapons are even accounted for.  Even some nuclear weapons from the fall of the Soviet Union are rumored to be missing.  The future of humanity does seem like it will have a few rough patches coming up to say the least.

 

That also adds in the ability for a nation to pull the "I didn't do it" card out.  How would the world react to Russian made nuclear weapon being activated by a terrorist organization to destroy an enemy of Russia or even a US funded weapon being used by a nation that is collapsing to stop an uprising.  Things are likely to get even more complex as time moves on.

What the people who are for Nuclear fail to realize is that they will be in the crossfire as well. The whole Earth will be a wasteland if enough people retaliate. & you know they will. They'll have an attitude of, Well he fired first so we have to fire back. It will be neverending!

Living in an underground bunker. How long do they actually think they can survive down there? & if the Earth is that devastated, it won't be temporary housing either.

Those who make the weapons would be held accountable as well if those weapons are lost, stolen, etc.

[Kyng]

On 9/16/2023 at 3:36 PM, ZandraJoi said:

A nuclear strike won't just affect that area. Even if we don't "feel" it here, everything is connected in this world.

The USA needs better authority. Our military was one of honor & respect. Evoked healthy fear. Now, we are not taken seriously.

& I don't worry just about Putin. Other leaders have been a bit "off their rocker" as well. One is bad enough but if they align with each other & the rest of the world is divided over such trivial things, I don't have much hope for the human race.

That is a concerning thought... indeed it's not just Putin, but also Xi Jinping, Kim Jong-un, and others. What if they all decided to attack at once? 

The USA certainly wouldn't be able to handle it alone. And whatever problems the current administration might have, that's also true of past administrations: the USA has never been powerful enough to take on the entire rest of the world on its own (except perhaps a brief period in 1945-49, when they were the only ones to have a nuclear bomb). Instead, I believe there would need to be a united response from the entire Western world.

[Uncrowned Guard]

On 9/24/2023 at 6:17 AM, Kyng said:

That is a concerning thought... indeed it's not just Putin, but also Xi Jinping, Kim Jong-un, and others. What if they all decided to attack at once? 

The USA certainly wouldn't be able to handle it alone. And whatever problems the current administration might have, that's also true of past administrations: the USA has never been powerful enough to take on the entire rest of the world on its own (except perhaps a brief period in 1945-49, when they were the only ones to have a nuclear bomb). Instead, I believe there would need to be a united response from the entire Western world.

I fell like the Ukraine war has helped not only to build NATO's resolve, but also showed the world that NATO (besides maybe Turkey) is willing to stand together against a nuclear power.  Ya, they didn't actually need to engage in war, but that firm resolve has to be on the mind of anyone wanting to attack one if it's members.

[Heatman]

Well, there's no way Russia is going to ever fire a nuclear bomb on Ukraine for any reason whatsoever, even with both of them fighting. This is because Ukraine agreed to give up its nuclear weapons in exchange for assurances of its territorial integrity and sovereignty from the United States, the United Kingdom, and Russia in 1994. So, if Russia fire a nuclear bomb at Ukraine, the United States and the United Kingdom will be forced to fire at them.