Russia reiterated on Sunday that President Vladimir Putin has not ordered any nuclear tests and the country will continue to abide by the ban on testing this weapon of mass destruction. This statement has come at a time when US President Donald Trump had given a statement a few days ago regarding the testing of nuclear weapons.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Russian television that President Putin has repeatedly said that Russia is fulfilling its responsibilities related to the ban on nuclear tests and that we will not conduct such tests. But if any other country does this, then to maintain equality we will also have to do the same.
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He said, if Washington really tests nuclear weapons, then Russia will also have to respond in the same way. Nuclear parity is of paramount importance in today’s global security system.
On October 29, US President Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that he has ‘instructed the Defense Ministry to start testing our nuclear weapons on the same level.’ Trump wrote, America has more nuclear weapons than any other country. This was possible with complete updating and renovation of old weapons during my first tenure. I didn’t want to do it, but I had no choice! Russia is in second place and China is in third, which it can catch up in five years.
Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov commented on President Putin’s offer in which he appealed to the US to keep the number of weapons stable even after the existing Strategic Arms Agreement (START-III) expires in February. Lavrov said in an interview published in RIA Novosti on Sunday that Russia was waiting for a response from the US.
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Lavrov said, President Putin’s constructive initiative in the post-New START agreement is self-evident. There is no hidden agenda and it is easy to understand. It does not require any special effort to implement, so we do not feel the need for a deep discussion on it. He said that till now no concrete response has come from America.
