"The American administration should critically consider what is happening and the possible risks," the Russian Embassy told Newsweek.

A Ukrainian drone strike set ablaze a Russian weapons depot storing North Korean ammunition in Bryansk Oblast, Ukraine’s General Staff reported on Oct. 9. "According to available information, missiles and artillery weapons,

Putin is changing Russia's "nuclear doctrine" to give a slightly lower threshold for using such weapons in response to an attack with conventional weapons.

Russia announced it still maintains a direct crisis hotline with the United States and NATO, as nuclear risks rise during the most intense standoff between Moscow and the West since the Cold War. The original "red phone" hotline between Moscow and Washington was set up in 1963 to prevent miscommunication after the Cuban Missile Crisis.