Russia โขDemands Clarity from US โฃon Potentialโค Nuclear Testing,โ Warns of Retaliatory Measures
Moscow – Russia has formally requestedโ clarificationโ from the โคUnitedโฃ Statesโฃ regardingโ reports โof a potentialโ resumption of nuclear weaponsโ testing, warning that โคsuch a moveโ could triggerโข a response from Russia adnโข otherโข nations. The โdemand comes after โformerโฃ President Trump ordered the USโค military to restart nuclearโ weapons testing, though โฃthe scopeโ of the order – whether โขit encompassed flight tests or actualโข nuclear explosions – remains unclear.
Accordingโ to Russian Foreign Ministry spokespersonโฃ Maria Zakharova, “If [the US resumes nuclear explosions], this will createโข negative dynamics and provoke measures from other states, โขincluding Russia, in response.” She further stated thatโข signals from Washington โคare causing “justified concern inโฃ all corners of the world” and require โclarification.
The concern prompted Russian President Vladimir putin to instruct senior officials on Wednesday to prepare proposals โfor a potential Russian nuclear โtest shouldโฃ the US โฃproceed with its own.โค
Security analysts warn that resuming nuclear โtests byโ any majorโ power would be a destabilizing act, particularlyโ givenโ current geopolitical tensions, including the ongoing war in โคUkraine, andโฃ could spur a wider arms race.
Russiaโ and the โขUS possess the world’s largest nuclear arsenals.โฃ A key โฃtreaty limitingโ strategic nuclear warheads between theโข two countries is set to expire inโ three months, raising fears of an escalating arms race. President putin โhas proposed extending โthe treaty’s limits for another year, butโข a formal response from the US has not yet been received.
It โhas โbeen overโค threeโ decades since either theโ US orโ Russia โขlast conducted a nuclearโ explosion test.
