Desperate Putin may unleash CHEMICAL weapons in weeks – losing prized region is dagger to his heart, says ex-Nato chief

RATTLED Vladimir Putin is each speech connected nukes but could unleash deadly chemic weapons wrong weeks, an ex-NATO commandant has warned.

Hamish de Bretton-Gordon insisted the Kremlin’s desperation to retake the strategical portion of Kursk could propulsion Putin to deploy chemic agents connected a devastating scale.

Pointing to the region's symbolic value for Russia, the chemic weapons adept argued losing power of Kursk would beryllium “a dagger" to the Russian despot's heart.

He told The Sun's Never Mind The Ballots: "Putin is perfectly rattled.

"He could person mislaid up to 700,000 soldiers already.

"Now, with Ukraine hitting backmost utilizing US ATACMS and British Storm Shadow missiles, helium knows his forces successful Kursk are sitting ducks.”

Kyiv launched its archetypal ATACMS strikes this week, hitting a Russian subject depot successful Bryansk connected the 1,000th time of the brutal war.

The UK’s Storm Shadow missiles struck again 2 days later, enraging Moscow and sparking retaliation that saw the motorboat of an intercontinental ballistic rocket for the archetypal clip since the warfare began.

Putin besides green-lit a caller atomic doctrine, setting retired caller conditions nether which the state would see utilizing its arsenal.

The erstwhile NATO's commanding serviceman dismissed the atomic threats arsenic “bluff and bluster,” adding that NATO quality and precocious weapons systems marque it astir intolerable for the Kremlin to transportation retired a palmy tactical atomic strike.

But informing of an escalating chemic threat, helium said: "The Russians are utilizing chemic weapons connected an concern standard successful the East astatine the moment, utilizing a happening called chloropicrin, which was the archetypal chemic weapon...

"If Putin substituted that chloropicrin with the Novichok that helium utilized successful Salisbury, then, thousands of radical could beryllium killed.”

Mr de Bretton-Gordon besides stressed the conflict for Kursk is pivotal, with Ukraine’s quality to clasp the portion perchance shaping the war’s outcome.

He explained: “Whoever holds Kursk travel Christmas clip volition beryllium connected the beforehand ft for the expected Trump negotiations and ceasefire astatine the extremity of January next year."

He urged NATO to supply Ukraine with each imaginable assets during this captious period, adding: “Hopefully these past 4 weeks are truly beneficial to Ukraine.

"And hopefully it’s amended precocious than ne'er alternatively than excessively late.”

On Sunday, US President Joe Biden authorised Ukraine to occurrence the American rockets wrong Russia.

The Kremlin said it marked the crossing of a reddish enactment - officially putting atomic retaliation connected the table.

And footage past nighttime revealed the moment Ukraine reportedly fired Storm Shadow rockets wrong Russia for the archetypal time.

The unverified video showed a nonmigratory successful Kursk pointing astatine the entity earlier large booms are heard successful the background.

Meanwhile different aerial footage purporting to amusement the onslaught captured rockets exploding a tract successful Kursk with an underground power room, Ukrainian defence experts said.

Giant plumes of fume could beryllium seen billowing from the site, earlier an orangish fireball engulfed the building.

Reports suggest the onslaught targeted a determination where North Korean generals could person been present alongside elder Russian subject leaders.

Russia's defence ministry was forced to admit connected Thursday that astatine slightest 2 of the Storm Shadow rockets had been fired by Ukraine.

Fragments of the bunker-busting rockets were recovered successful the colony of Marine, Kursk, connected Wednesday, it is understood.

Up to 12 missiles were launched by a Ukrainian aircraft, according to reports.

Britain's Storm Shadow missiles are a nightmare for enemies arsenic they are susceptible of dodging aerial defences.

The £800,000 weapons - which were already being fired wrong Ukraine - usage GPS to precisely deed targets, and tin question astatine 600mph.