US actions may prompt Russia to consider increasing nuclear arsenal

Mikhail Ulyanov, the Director of the Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control at the Russian Foreign Ministry, warned that US measures undermining global strategic stability may force Russia to grow its nuclear arsenal instead of carrying out further disarmament.

Speaking at the Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons in New York on Friday, Ulyanov stated that the US proposal to reduce the total number of deployed warheads by a third is based on their understanding that they will remain able to adequately defend themselves and their allies, Sputnik reported.

Unfortunately, the official noted, "US actions have led to the appearance of completely contradictory factors which, in some circumstances, may even push Russia to begin increasing [its nuclear arsenal]."

Ulyanov clarified that "at the moment, we are not planning to do so, but what is being done by the Americans makes it very difficult, and maybe impossible, to see real prospects for further steps toward nuclear disarmament."