Putin orders to submit proposals on preparations for nuclear tests

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, the special services, and the relevant civil...

MOSCOW: Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, the special services, and the relevant civil agencies to submit proposals regarding the preparation of nuclear weapons tests.

"I instruct the Foreign Ministry, the Defense Ministry, the special services, and the relevant civil agencies to gather and analyze additional information on this issue at the Security Council and submit agreed proposals on the potential start of preparations for nuclear weapons tests," the head of state said. "Let's proceed on this basis. I await your report," he concluded.

At the meeting, which was supposed to focus on transport security and the results of the government delegation's visit to China, State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin requested the opportunity "to speak off the record. He pointed to US President Donald Trump's statements about resuming nuclear weapons testing and mentioned that lawmakers were worried about the situation.

Putin called this a serious issue and asked Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, Russian Armed Forces’ General Staff Chief Army General Valery Gerasimov, Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) Director Sergey Naryshkin, Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu, and Federal Security Service (FSB) Director Alexander Bortnikov to comment.

Belousov, in particular, pointed to Washington's active build-up of strategic offensive weapons. According to him, Russia must therefore maintain its nuclear potential in order to respond adequately. With this in mind, the minister said it was advisable to "immediately begin preparations for full-scale nuclear tests."

Earlier, the US president said he had instructed the Pentagon to resume nuclear weapons testing immediately, citing the fact that other countries were already doing so. Trump did not specify what kind of tests he was referring to or whether they would include the detonation of nuclear warheads.

-News Feed