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Welcome to The Adversarial. Every other week, we’ll provide you with expert analysis on America’s greatest challengers: China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and jihadists. Read more below.***RussiaOn Nov. 5, a few days after U.S. President Donald Trump suggested that the United States might resume nuclear weapons testing, Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the country’s security council to prepare proposals for Russia to also resume nuclear tests. The public nature of this announcement suggests that it was meant first and foremost as a signal to the United States that Moscow is prepared for further nuclear escalation if Washington proceeds. Putin’s announcement that Russia had successfully tested the Burevestnik nuclear-powered missile and Poseidon underwater missile was similarly a message aimed at Washington. At the same time, Russian leaders have increasingly come to believe that nuclear weapons can be more than a means of deterrence and psychological pressure — they can also potentially be useful in combat.Over the last week, there was speculation in Western media that the absence of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov from the Russian Security Council meeting was a signal that he was out of favor with Putin and about to be removed. This speculation led to an official denial and Lavrov’s subsequent reappearance with a lengthy interview with RIA Novosti.Meanwhile, Russian forces have intensified their efforts to capture the long-besieged city of Pokrovsk, with Russian troops using the negative impact of poor weather conditions, such as fog, on Ukrainian drone reconnaissance to penetrate into the city. While taking Pokrovsk in and of itself is unlikely to provide Russia with a strategic victory, its capture would allow Russian forces to focus on taking Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, the last two major Ukrainian-held cities in the Donetsk region.Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting of the Russian Security Council in 2023. Image: