President Vladimir V. Putin on Wednesday repeated Russia’s unsubstantiated warning that Ukraine was preparing to explode a so-called dirty bomb, as concerns rose in the West that the Kremlin was seeking a pretext to escalate its war in Ukraine.
Mr. Putin joined the chorus of senior Russian officials who have claimed in recent days — without providing evidence — that Ukraine planned to detonate a dirty bomb, which uses conventional explosives to spread radioactive material. It was the first time the Russian leader made the claim, which Western officials have dismissed, suggesting Moscow could use it as a pretext for launching its own attack.
At the same time, the Russian military conducted an annual exercise involving land, sea and air field tests of its missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
State television broadcast short clips of the launches as well as an excerpt from Mr. Putin receiving a briefing from Russia’s defense minister, Sergei K. Shoigu, saying that the tests had been successful.
Russia informed the United States of the test beforehand as stipulated by disarmament treaties, U.S. officials have said. U.S. officials...
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