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Political scientist Stepan Danielyan has warned of an imminent threat of nuclear war after the Russian nuclear doctrine change.

President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on November 19 updating and expanding Moscow's nuclear doctrine to allow for the use of atomic weapons in case of an attack on Russia by a nonnuclear actor that is backed by a nuclear power.

The doctrine says Moscow could use nuclear weapons “in response to the use of nuclear and other types of weapons of mass destruction” against Russia or its allies, as well as “in the event of aggression” against Russia and Belarus with conventional weapons that threaten “their sovereignty and/or territorial integrity.”

“We’re rapidly heading toward nuclear war,” Danielyan wrote on Facebook on Wednesday.

“Nowadays, even a country like Russia is not sure about its sovereignty and territorial integrity, let alone the others.

“This opens up new opportunities for other countries that will try to create nuclear weapons. The first candidates are Ukraine and Iran, with Turkey, Japan, Egypt and Saudi Arabia next in line.

“Maybe it's time for us to think about it too if the current leader does not close the nuclear power plant before then,” the political analyst said.