Russian Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu has warned that Moscow could resume nuclear testing.
Shoigu made the comments during an interview with the Russian state-run TASS news agency on April 24.
Shoigu emphasized that Russia’s position on nuclear testing would directly depend on U.S. actions in this field. He pointed to expiring service life for parts of the U.S. nuclear arsenal and ongoing development of new weapons systems as factors that might prompt Washington to conduct nuclear tests.
“In this case, Russia may take reciprocal measures,” Shoigu said.
The Russian defense ministry and the state atomic energy corporation are prepared for such a possibility, Shoigu noted. He also underscored that Russia has, in recent years, fielded a number of modernized strategic weapon systems, significantly enhancing the country’s military capabilities. However, Shoigu stated that at present, Moscow does not see an urgent need to conduct nuclear tests.
Russia’s last nuclear test was conducted by the Soviet Union on October 24, 1990, at Novaya Zemlya. The Soviet Union subsequently declared a unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing, a policy that Russia has continued to uphold.