The map of where you need to go to survive a nuclear war

Things are getting.... worrying.

Vladimir Putin has put Russia’s nuclear deterrent forces on high alert, citing “aggressive statements” by NATO and tough financial sanctions, and increased the risk of a devastating nuclear war in the process.

The move followed a message from Putin who warned that anyone who tried to “hinder” Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will see “consequences you have never seen in your history”.

Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has also warned a third World War would be ‘nuclear and destructive’.

If you want to survive an immediate strike in a conflict between nuclear superpowers, it follows that you'll want to avoid countries with access to nuclear weapons or involved in nuclear agreements.

Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter

According to the below chart by Statista, your best bet appears to be in the Southern hemisphere for this strategy:

According to the Federation of American Scientists, Russia and the United States own more than 90 per cent of the nuclear warheads in the world.

This is also all assuming that the conflict will occur and the missiles will land in nuclear-connected countries.

There are a number of other factors to consider - the global temperature would drop a couple of degrees while the ozone would be reduced over the course of the next decade after initial strikes.

Fewer crops would grow and drought would be more prevalent, while skin cancer and burns would be more likely due to the ozone layer depletion.

So somewhere not too sunny in Africa or South America with abundant food resources would (probably) be ideal for your nuclear winter getaway.

Wherever that is.

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.