Does war with Russia have to be nuclear war ?

It would end up nuclear. Look we've been dealing with this crap for over 60 years and this world has infinitely larger problems to deal with than Russia's paranoia and 19th century view of things, same with China and the Islamists. A cataclysm is coming one way or the other, and the survival of humanity is going to be up in the air, I prefer the good guys end up winning.