Once Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky finally unveiled his secret "victory plan" to defeat Russia, there was a palpable sense of disappointment in foreign policy circles. The long-awaited plan was simply more of the same. More and better weapons from the United States and Great Britain and more permission to strike targets deeper in the heart of Russia with them. Of course, those things would need to be accompanied by vast amounts of additional money courtesy of the American taxpayers. Little to no mention was made of the fact that Zelinsky would be further prodding the nuclear-armed Russian bear. Perhaps Zelensky caught wind of that discontent, prompting him to respond this week. He claimed that Vladimir Putin is actually "afraid" to use his nuclear weapons in anger, leading him to make bellicose statements that he doesn't intend to back up with actions. Is this really a wise approach? At least thus far, none of the allied nations appear to be rising to take the bait. (Newsweek)

Vladimir Putin is "afraid to use nuclear weapons" because he loves his life and controlling the lives of others, Volodymyr Zelensky has said.

The Russian President said on September 25 that he was changing Russia's "nuclear doctrine," possibly expanding the circumstances under which such devastating weapons could be used.

But Zelensky said he does not think Putin would risk using nuclear weapons, in an interview with Fox News.

The Ukrainian leader said: "Nobody knows what's in his (Putin's) head really. He could use nuclear (weapons) on any country at any time. Or not.

As noted in the excerpt above, this isn't the first time that Putin has raised the specter of taking this conflict to a catastrophic level. Putin has previously made reference to mushroom clouds and the fact that many capitals of NATO countries are well within the reach of his tactical weapons. Barely a week ago, Putin announced that he was changing his nation's "nuclear doctrine" to potentially include scenarios where such weapons could be employed. That doesn't sound like the sort of thing a world leader would do if they were looking to lower tensions in the region.

None of this seems to be sinking in for Zelensky, however. He's sounding increasingly like the nerdy kid on the playground who is jutting his chin out in the face of the class bully and daring him to take a swing. That might work for you once or twice, but eventually, you're going to earn yourself a knuckle sandwich. The problem with the situation in Russia and Ukraine is that the bully may not stop at just knocking out the class clown.

Zelensky went on to explain that Putin loves the life he is leading and the power he commands. Therefore, he is likely afraid to go nuclear because he would be risking it all for supposedly limited gains. But this simplistic analysis flies in the face of what many international military analysts have been telling us since this war began. Put has a lot riding on this war, particularly if he wants to maintain peace on the home front. Too many Russian families have already seen their young men conscripted and sent off to the war, with increasing numbers of them returning in body bags. Those families need to be shown that their sacrifices were not made in vain. Most of Putin's hard-core enemies at home are safely out of the way, having been locked up in labor camps or suffering mysterious falls out of hospital windows. But any leader in such a position has no shortage of adversaries who are always looking for an opportunity to pounce.

Ukraine has no tactical weapons of its own that we know of. (Nobody should be crazy enough to give this former comedian a pile of nukes.) But that doesn't mean that he couldn't sink some of the rest of us if he pushes Putin too far. Zelensky is now very likely the biggest obstacle to a negotiated peace deal with the Kremlin. That's somewhat ironic because his country would only stand to benefit from such an arrangement at this point.