Russia won’t break nuclear test ban unless US does – Kremlin
Spokesman Dmitry Peskov has dismissed concerns over recent tests of the Burevestnik missile and Poseidon drone, saying they did not involve nuclear explosions
Russia has no intention of violating its obligations under international agreements banning nuclear tests, but will resume testing if other countries do, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said.
Peskov was responding to the controversy sparked by US President Donald Trump’s order last week directing the Pentagon to prepare to resume nuclear testing. Trump accused Russia and China of conducting “secret” nuclear tests – which both countries have dismissed.
President Vladimir Putin later reaffirmed Russia’s commitment to the internationally recognized Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, but warned that if the US or others resume testing, Moscow would take “appropriate retaliatory measures.” Some Western outlets misinterpreted his remarks as an order to prepare for tests.
“Putin has repeatedly stated that Russia is committed to its nuclear test ban obligations, and we have no intention of violating them,” Peskov said in an interview with journalist Pavel Zarubin aired on Sunday.
He added that Putin instructed officials to assess whether nuclear tests are necessary, rather than ordering their resumption, while warning that Russia would act in kind if the US or others resume testing.
“If another country does this, we will be obliged to do so in order to maintain parity,” he said, calling nuclear balance “one of the most important components of global security architecture.”
Peskov dismissed Western concerns about Russia’s recent trials of the nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile and the Poseidon underwater drone which preceded Trump’s announcement, arguing that neither involved nuclear explosions.
He accused Western “experts” of “superficial and incorrect” conclusions that confused nuclear tests with trials of nuclear-powered systems, adding that Moscow expects clarification from Washington about Trump’s statements on nuclear tests, calling the issue “too serious” to ignore.
US Vice President J.D. Vance earlier described Trump’s push for nuclear testing as a way to ensure the country’s arsenal still “functions properly.” Earlier this week, the US Air Force test-fired an unarmed Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead with an estimated yield exceeding 300 kilotons of TNT – roughly 20 times more powerful than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.
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