The usage of this weapon was a nuclear delivery system deployed in a conventional war, on a civilian capital, to signal displeasure. It can be implied that Russia is not using it because it is the most accurate or effective tool available; it is using it because it carries an implicit threat that conventional munitions do not. The launch of a missile of this caliber by Moscow is a reminder that Russia has a nuclear arsenal and is willing to blur the line between conventional and nuclear warfare when it sees fit.

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