The Kremlin on Thursday responded cautiously to U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement on the resumption of American nuclear weapons testing, stating that Russia has not conducted any such tests but would reciprocate if Washington proceeds.
Trump directed the U.S. military to restart nuclear testing after a 33-year hiatus, just minutes before his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. He justified the move by citing “other countries’ testing programmes,” saying the U.S. would now act “on an equal basis.”
Reacting to the statement, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters, “President Trump said that other countries are testing nuclear weapons. Until now, we were not aware of anyone conducting such tests.” He added that Moscow had received no prior notification from Washington regarding any shift in its nuclear testing policy.
When asked if Trump’s comments signaled the start of a new nuclear arms race, Peskov replied, “Not really.”
He also clarified that Russia’s recent trials of the Burevestnik cruise missile on October 21 and the Poseidon nuclear-powered torpedo on October 28 were not nuclear weapons tests.
Peskov reaffirmed President Vladimir Putin’s longstanding position that if any nation abandons the moratorium on nuclear testing, Russia will respond in kind.
“President Putin has repeatedly stated: if someone breaks the moratorium, Russia will act accordingly,” Peskov said.
Post-Soviet Russia has never conducted a nuclear test. The Soviet Union last did so in 1990, followed by the United States in 1992 and China in 1996.
