RATTLED Vladimir Putin is all talk on nukes but could unleash deadly chemical weapons within weeks, an ex-NATO commander has warned.
Hamish de Bretton-Gordon insisted the Kremlin’s desperation to retake the strategic region of Kursk could push Putin to deploy chemical agents on a devastating scale.
Pointing to the region's symbolic importance for Russia, the chemical weapons expert argued losing control of Kursk would be “a dagger" to the Russian despot's heart.
He told The Sun's Never Mind The Ballots: "Putin is absolutely rattled.
"He could have lost up to 700,000 soldiers already.
"Now, with Ukraine hitting back using US ATACMS and British Storm Shadow missiles, he knows his forces in Kursk are sitting ducks.”
Kyiv launched its first ATACMS strikes this week, hitting a Russian military depot in Bryansk on the 1,000th day of the brutal war.
The UK’s Storm Shadow missiles struck again two days later, enraging Moscow and sparking retaliation that saw the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile for the first time since the war began.
Putin also green-lit a new nuclear doctrine, setting out new conditions under which the country would consider using its arsenal.
The former NATO's commanding officer dismissed the nuclear threats as “bluff and bluster,” adding that NATO intelligence and advanced weapons systems make it nearly impossible for the Kremlin to carry out a successful tactical nuclear strike.
But warning of an escalating chemical threat, he said: "The Russians are using chemical weapons on an industrial scale in the East at the moment, using a thing called chloropicrin, which was the first chemical weapon...
"If Putin substituted that chloropicrin with the Novichok that he used in Salisbury, then, thousands of people could be killed.”
Mr de Bretton-Gordon also stressed the battle for Kursk is pivotal, with Ukraine’s ability to hold the region potentially shaping the war’s outcome.
He explained: “Whoever holds Kursk come Christmas time will be on the front foot for the expected Trump negotiations and ceasefire at the end of January next year."
He urged NATO to provide Ukraine with every possible resource during this critical period, adding: “Hopefully these last four weeks are really beneficial to Ukraine.
"And hopefully it’s better late than never rather than too late.”
On Sunday, US President Joe Biden authorised Ukraine to fire the American rockets inside Russia.
The Kremlin said it marked the crossing of a red line - officially putting nuclear retaliation on the table.
And footage last night revealed the moment Ukraine reportedly fired Storm Shadow rockets inside Russia for the first time.
The unverified video showed a resident in Kursk pointing at the sky before loud booms are heard in the background.
Meanwhile other aerial footage purporting to show the strike captured rockets exploding a site in Kursk with an underground control room, Ukrainian defence experts said.
Giant plumes of smoke could be seen billowing from the site, before an orange fireball engulfed the building.
Reports suggest the attack targeted a location where North Korean generals could have been present alongside senior Russian military leaders.
Russia's defence ministry was forced to admit on Thursday that at least two of the Storm Shadow rockets had been fired by Ukraine.
Fragments of the bunker-busting rockets were found in the village of Marine, Kursk, on Wednesday, it is understood.
Up to 12 missiles were launched by a Ukrainian aircraft, according to reports.
Britain's Storm Shadow missiles are a nightmare for enemies as they are capable of dodging air defences.
The £800,000 weapons - which were already being fired within Ukraine - use GPS to precisely hit targets, and can travel at 600mph.
