Biden warns of NATO response should Russia use chemical weapons

NATO would in fact respond should Russia use chemical weapons in Ukraine, President Biden warned during a press conference out of Brussels on Thursday, Axios reports.
Per The Washington Free Beacon's Chuck Ross, it was "the first time Biden has explicitly identified a red line."
The White House has previously brought up the possibility of Russia implementing a chemical or biological weapons attack in its war with Ukraine — earlier this month, Biden told reporters that Russia would pay a "severe price" should it conduct a chemical weapons assault.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
On Thursday, when asked if the U.S. had gathered information indicating Moscow was considering chemical warfare, Biden declined to comment specifically on intelligence but said, "We would respond if he uses it," alluding to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"The nature of the response would depend on the nature of the use," Biden added, per Axios.
When asked again later if the use of chemical weapons would generate a NATO response, Biden replied, "It would trigger a response in kind."
The president also during the presser weighed the suggestion of removing Russia from the G20, and addressed the possibility of Trump winning the presidency in 2024.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brigid Kennedy worked at The Week from 2021 to 2023 as a staff writer, junior editor and then story editor, with an interest in U.S. politics, the economy and the music industry.
-
Today's political cartoons - April 20, 2025
Cartoons Sunday's cartoons - Pam Bondi, retirement planning, and more
By The Week US
-
5 heavy-handed cartoons about ICE and deportation
Cartoons Artists take on international students, the Supreme Court, and more
By The Week US
-
Exploring the three great gardens of Japan
The Week Recommends Beautiful gardens are 'the stuff of Japanese landscape legends'
By The Week UK
-
Is the 'coalition of the willing' going to work?
Today's Big Question PM's proposal for UK/French-led peacekeeping force in Ukraine provokes 'hostility' in Moscow and 'derision' in Washington
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
Ukraine: where do Trump's loyalties really lie?
Today's Big Question 'Extraordinary pivot' by US president – driven by personal, ideological and strategic factors – has 'upended decades of hawkish foreign policy toward Russia'
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK
-
Is Europe's defence too reliant on the US?
Today's Big Question As the UK and EU plan to 're-arm', how easy will it be to disentangle from US equipment and support?
By Elliott Goat, The Week UK
-
What will Trump-Putin Ukraine peace deal look like?
Today's Big Question US president 'blindsides' European and UK leaders, indicating Ukraine must concede seized territory and forget about Nato membership
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
Ukraine's disappearing army
Under the Radar Every day unwilling conscripts and disillusioned veterans are fleeing the front
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
Cuba's mercenaries fighting against Ukraine
The Explainer Young men lured by high salaries and Russian citizenship to enlist for a year are now trapped on front lines of war indefinitely
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
Ukraine-Russia: are both sides readying for nuclear war?
Today's Big Question Putin changes doctrine to lower threshold for atomic weapons after Ukraine strikes with Western missiles
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
Experts call for a Nato bank to 'Trump-proof' military spending
Under The Radar A new lender could aid co-operation and save millions of pounds, say think tanks
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK