Putin says he is moving Russia's nuclear deterrent to special alert

Russia's President Vladimir Putin says he has ordered the Russian military to put its nuclear forces on special alert in response to what he described as aggression by the NATO military alliance.

The move which does not mean Russia intends to use the weapons has been widely condemned with the US calling it totally unacceptable and NATO describing it as dangerous and irresponsible.

For the first time, the NATO Response Force has been activated as a defensive measure in response to Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine.

It consists of land, air, sea and special operations forces from countries that can deploy quickly in support of the NATO alliance.

The NATO alliance includes the U.S, most European Union members, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Turkey.

Ukraine claims that 4,300 Russians have died in the whole invasion.

The European Union says it is sending weapons to Ukraine and has banned all Russian flights from European airspace.

[Source: BBC]