The word “escalation” creates sense of fear – that’s why Putin likes it | News In Depth

As Russia intensifies its attacks on Ukraine and issues fresh nuclear threats over Kaliningrad, Vladimir Putin is once again warning the West against “escalation.”

“I went through the entire speech and it came up a number of times, often in different circumstances. (...) he likes it is because it creates a sense of fear,” said TVP World’s Senior Online Editor Matthew Day. “Russia, of course, never escalates. It’s always a nasty West that is escalating.”

According to Day, the Kremlin uses the threat of escalation to justify repeated references to its nuclear arsenal and portray Russia as the aggrieved party rather than the aggressor.

“It’s like coded messages,” Day said. “‘We threaten nobody. Oh, by the way, we have the nuclear bomb.’”

He argued that this messaging is aimed not only at Western leaders, but also at domestic audiences inside Russia.

“I was wondering whether he believed it himself because it was just so full of rubbish,” TVP World’s Senior Online Editor said. “Maybe he does, and maybe he doesn’t, (...) he just knows that he can spew any amount of lies to the supine and controlled Russian audience, and that will just get him by.”

“The Russian people might get a bit tired of the war in Ukraine. But if they think that Russia is fighting for its very survival,” Day said, Putin “might get more people to sign up, might get more people behind him.”

Join News in Depth’s host Ashim Kumar and his guest as they explore why Moscow continues to rely on nuclear rhetoric, whether Russia’s threats over Kaliningrad are intended to deter NATO or simply sow fear, and how the Kremlin uses propaganda to sustain public support for a costly war.

Chapters:
00:00 Putin’s nuclear warning and the politics of escalation
03:43 Attacks on civilians and pressure on Western support
07:24 NATO risks and Russia’s strategy of fear
11:33 Uncertainty surrounding the RAF Fairford investigation

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