Putin ramps up nuclear threats over Ukraine strikes

Driving the news: The new doctrine expands the range of countries and alliances — a clear reference to NATO — subject to nuclear deterrence. It also claims nuclear weapons would only be a last resort to protect Russia's sovereignty, Russian state news agency TASS reported.

• It states that Russia will consider an attack from any non-nuclear state with the backing of a nuclear country as a joint attack.
• It also states that Russia reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in response to a conventional weapons attack that threatens its sovereignty.

Zoom in: The Russian Defense Ministry on Tuesday accused Ukraine of firing six U.S.-made ATACMS missiles on Russia's Bryansk region.

• It added that Russian air defenses shot down five of the missiles and damaged one.
• Kyiv did not offer an official response to the reported strikes.

The big picture: The announcement's timing came just days after the U.S. authorized Ukraine for the first time to use U.S.-provided long-range missiles to strike targets inside Russia.

• It also coincided with the 1,000th day of Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.

• The new doctrine marks the latest in a series of shifts in the war, including Ukraine's own incursion into Russia and North Korea's deployment of troops to aid Russian forces.

Zoom out: Putin has long signaled his intent to lower the nuclear threshold.

• The Kremlin has frequently made thinly-veiled nuclear threats since the start of the war in an effort to deter Western support for Ukraine.

Go deeper: Mapped: Russia's war in Ukraine hits 1,000-day mark

Editor's note: This story was updated with additional developments.