Russia has launched one of its largest strategic nuclear exercises in recent years, involving tens of thousands of troops, missile launchers, warships, submarines, and nuclear-capable aircraft near NATO’s borders. The drills, conducted jointly with Belarus, are widely being viewed as a powerful display of Moscow’s nuclear deterrence strategy amid rising tensions with the West. The Russian Defence Ministry released footage showing road-mobile missile launchers, including Iskander-M systems, taking part in high-alert combat exercises involving the deployment and preparation of nuclear-capable munitions. The exercises also included elements of Russia’s Strategic Missile Forces, long-range aviation, and naval nuclear assets from the Northern and Pacific Fleets.