Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, on Sunday, ordered Russian nuclear forces to be put on high alert in response to “aggressive statements” by NATO leaders and economic sanctions against Moscow.

According to a report by The Guardian, Putin gave the order at a meeting with Sergei Shoigu, the Russian Defence Minister, and Valery Gerasimov, the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces.

“Senior officials of the leading NATO countries also allow aggressive statements against our country, therefore I order the minister of defense and the chief of the general staff to transfer the deterrence forces of the Russian army to a special mode of combat duty,” said Putin.

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“Western countries aren’t only taking unfriendly actions against our country in the economic sphere, but top officials from leading NATO members made aggressive statements regarding our country.

“As you can see, not only do western countries take unfriendly measures against our country in the economic dimension — I mean the illegal sanctions that everyone knows about very well — but also the top officials of leading NATO countries allow themselves to make aggressive statements with regards to our country.”

This came hours after Boris Johnson, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, announced western leaders’ resolve to shut Russia out of the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT), a global International payment system, over its invasion of Ukraine.