I have been worried about this myself. LOTS of people seem to be scared that the Neo-Soviet Union will use nukes to subdue Ukraine,and that this will lead to nuclear war.
I wish I could say "That is preposterous!",but I can't. Putin is obviously insulated from reality,which is a condition shared by every dictator in history.
The same can be said for the freaking Chinese.
Unfortunately,there is nothing we can do to slap them back into line.
If China and the Neo Soviet Union choose to take this path,there WILL be another world war. Not that reality is ever allowed to intrude into the thoughts of dictators until it is time to back them against a wall and shoot them.