"We were not surprised by Russia's announcement that it would update its nuclear doctrine; Russia had been signalling its intent to update its doctrine for several weeks." "It would be fair to say it's the latest example of irresponsibility that we have seen from the depraved Russian government and we remain steadfast in our support for Ukraine.

The decision to change Russia's official nuclear doctrine is the Kremlin's answer to a reported decision by the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden to allow Ukraine to fire American long-range missiles deep into Russia.

A decree signed by the Russian leader, though long planned, came days after President Biden authorized the use of U.S.-supplied missiles by Ukraine for strikes inside Russia.