MOSCOWO In response to what he described as Washington’s extraordinarily unfriendly approach, Russia’s point man for weapons control warned Donald Trump’s new administration on Friday not to resume nuclear testing, but to keep its own options open.
Nearly 80 years after the United States exploded the first nuclear weapon in July 1945 at Alamogordo, New Mexico, the two biggest nuclear powers in the world would resume testing, ushering in a new and perilous era.
At the same time that Cold War arms control agreements between the US and the USSR are disintegrating, China, Russia, and the US are all updating their nuclear arsenals.
Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, who is in charge of arms control, said explicitly in a message to Washington that Trump had adopted a radical position on the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) during his first term.
Ryabkov told Russia’s Kommersant daily that the current state of international affairs is very challenging and that American policy in all of its facets is very unfriendly to us.
Therefore, nothing is excluded from our options for acting to provide security, as well as from the possible steps and actions we have to accomplish this and send messages that are politically acceptable.
According to the 2020 Washington Post, Trump’s administration discussed whether to carry out the country’s first nuclear test since 1992 during his first term as president, which ran from 2017 to 2021.
In order to bring Russia closer to the United States, President Vladimir Putin formally canceled Russia’s ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 2023.
The Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was approved by Russia in 1996. Despite signing the deal in 1996, the US has not yet ratified it.
TEST FOR NUCLEARITY?
Some experts in arms control worry that the US is going back to testing to create new weapons and to send a message to competitors like China and Russia.
The Federation of American Scientists estimates that the United States has 5,044 warheads and Russia has 5,580, which together account for around 88% of the global nuclear arsenal. There are about 500 warheads in China.
The United Nations reports that between 1945 and the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty of 1996, the Soviet Union carried out 715 nuclear tests and the United States 1,032 tests.
Russia hasn’t tested its nuclear weapons since the end of the Soviet Union. Tests were last carried out by the Soviet Union in 1990.
According to Putin, Russia will think about testing a nuclear weapon if the US does. In reaction to a wider spectrum of conventional attacks, including Moscow’s allegation that Ukraine had used US-made ATACMS missiles to strike deep within Russia, Putin lowered the threshold for a nuclear strike last month.
Only a few nations have conducted nuclear weapons tests since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, according to the Arms Control Association: North Korea in 2017, China and France in 1996, India and Pakistan in 1998, and the United States in 1992.
RESOURCE
Note: Every piece of content is rigorously reviewed by our team of experienced writers and editors to ensure its accuracy. Our writers use credible sources and adhere to strict fact-checking protocols to verify all claims and data before publication. If an error is identified, we promptly correct it and strive for transparency in all updates, feel free to reach out to us via email. We appreciate your trust and support!
Eliot Pierce is a dedicated writer for ChiefsFocus.com, covering local crime and finance news. With a keen eye for detail and a passion for storytelling, Eliot aims to provide his readers with clear and insightful analysis, helping them navigate the complexities of their financial lives while staying informed about important local events. His commitment to delivering accurate and engaging content makes him a valuable resource for the community.