Threatening the Unthinkable

"[For immediate release]: HHS purchases drug for use in radiological and nuclear emergencies

As part of long-standing, ongoing efforts to be better prepared to save lives following radiological and nuclear emergencies, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is purchasing a supply of the drug Nplate from Amgen USA Inc; Nplate is approved to treat blood cell injuries that accompany acute radiation syndrome in adult and pediatric patients (ARS)."

"[The US government:] the procurement of Nplate was not in response to the war in Ukraine,”

"This is part of our ongoing work for preparedness and radiological security. It has not been accelerated by the situation in Ukraine."

Health and Human Services, Washington

 

Photo: Stephen Chernin/Getty Images

 "ARS, also known as radiation sickness, occurs when a person’s entire body is exposed to a high dose of penetrating radiation, reaching internal organs in a matter of seconds."
"Symptoms of ARS injuries include impaired blood clotting as a result of low platelet counts, which can lead to uncontrolled and life-threatening bleeding.:
"To reduce radiation-induced bleeding, Nplate stimulates the body’s production of platelets. The drug can be used to treat adults and children."

Health and Human Services, (HSS) Washington  

It is a coincidence that soon after Russia's Vladimir Putin, enraged by the West's unconditional support of Ukraine in response to Moscow's invasion of its neighbor, the president once again raised the spectre of his possible ordering of limited nuclear strikes in Ukraine, to counter the advantages seen on the battlefield in the Ukrainian military's counteroffensive, thanks largely both to their spectacular determination and courage and the advanced military technology supplied to them.

Mr. Putin's efforts to put on the face of an impervious military strike crippling Ukrainian defences simply hasn't worked in the reality of the reverse. While Russian troops have become notorious for committing grave war crimes against civilian populations in Ukraine, they have not fared so well against an army countering their stated purpose; to remove the current democratically-elected government of Ukraine, and to reinstall a puppet government faithful to Moscow.

When that initial goal failed and Russian troops reassembled in the Donbas with the stated goal of annexing Luhansk and Donetsk, then extending the annexation plans to two additional provinces, the mettle of the Ukrainian military became obvious in one routing of Russian area and village occupation after another, the Russian servicemen withdrawing in haste, thoughtfully leaving behind their own military hardware to augment the armoury of the Ukrainian military.

People gather in front of a large screen to celebrate the planned incorporation of regions of Ukraine into Russia in Sevastopol, Crimea on Sept. 30, 2022. (The Associated Press)

 

All of which has sat so poorly with Vladimir Putin that he saw fit to darkly refer once again to the potential of bringing in nuclear bombs. For once the announcement was made by Putin that Russia has formally annexed 18 percent of Ukraine in its northeast and south, any attacks there by the Ukrainian military would be interpreted by the Kremlin as an attack on Russia itself. While of course Russia feels it can attack Ukraine with impunity, it bristles with sanctimonious outrage at the prospect of Ukraine attacking inside the Russian border -- yet to be declared.

The purchase of $290-worth of a pharmaceutical to treat acute radiation syndrome (ARS) simply coincided with Putin's threat renewal of nuclear war, however limited. He would not fail to use "all the means at our disposal" in the protection of Russia and its population. "This is not a bluff", he emphasized. Leving the U.S. government to respond that the procurement of Nplate had nothing to do with the war in Ukraine.

"This is part of our ongoing work for preparedness and radiological security. It has not been accelerated by the situation in Ukraine, stated a spokesman for the HSS. The HSS partnered with Amgen along with other pharmaceutical companies for years to procure a maintenance stockpile of Leukine, a drug to treat ARS. Another partnership with Novartis was to determine whether a product used for patients with low blood platelets, known as thrombocytopenia, could be used as well as protection in the event of a nuclear incident. 

Sensibly, the supply of Nplate had a well defined purpose: "to save lives following radiological and nuclear emergencies" stated the HSS.

 

A Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile is launched from Plesetsk in Russia's northwest. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that he wouldn't hesitate to use nuclear weapons to ward off Ukraine's attempt to reclaim occupied regions that Moscow is trying to absorb. (Roscosmos Space Agency Press Service/The Associated Press)