Moscow – The Russian foreign ministry on Wednesday rejected US arguments to deploy low-powered nuclear warheads, warning that an attempt to use such weapons against Russia would trigger total nuclear retaliation.
The U.S. State Department argued in a document released last week that placing low-powered nuclear warheads on ballistic missiles located in submarines would help counter potential new threats from Russia and China. He charged that Moscow in particular was weighing the use of non-strategic nuclear weapons as a form of coercion in a limited conflict – a claim that Russia has repeatedly denied.
The State Department stressed that the new supplemental warhead “reduces the risk of nuclear war by reinforcing deterrence and security,” but the Russian foreign ministry sees it differently.
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Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova commented on the State Department document in a briefing on Wednesday, stressing that the United States should not view its new warheads as a flexible tool that would help prevent a total nuclear conflict with Russia.
“Any attack involving a ballistic missile launched by a US submarine (SLBM), regardless of the specifications of its weapons, would be perceived as nuclear assault,” said Zakharova. “Those who like to theorize about the flexibility of the American nuclear potential must understand that, according to Russian military doctrine, such actions are considered a guarantee that Russia will retaliate with its nuclear weapons.”
