Russia raises tension as US upgrades nuclear arsenal in Europe
‘Unfortunately, in the case of these plans, this can lead to a violation of the strategic balance in Europe’
RUSSIA has threatened to take “countermeasures” if the US goes ahead with the deployment of a new type of nuclear weapon to bases in Germany, raising fears of the return of a Cold War arms race in Europe.
The Kremlin said plans reported by German media for the US to upgrade its nuclear weapons arsenal in the country would be “a serious step towards raising tension” in Europe.
“Unfortunately, in the case of these plans – and we can say with certainty that they are moving towards realisation – this can lead to a violation of the strategic balance in Europe,” said Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for President Vladimir Putin.
“Therefore, of course, that would require Russia to take counter-steps and countermeasures to restore balance and parity.”
The escalation in the war of words between Moscow and Washington follows Russia’s intervention in the war in Syria, which the US described as “unhelpful”. Syria confirmed that Russian drones had been used in military operations. The Syrian army yesterday launched an offensive to relieve a siege by Isil on a regime air base east of Aleppo, though it is not clear if that was the front where the drones were deployed.
The deployment of American nuclear weapons in Europe is subject to secrecy, but details appear to have been leaked in recent weeks. The US is plan- ning to replace 20 nuclear weapons at Büchel air base in western Germany with a more modern variant, according to details reported by ZDF television.
According to the reports, the current B61 bombs are to be replaced with B6112s, which are more accurate and less destructive. The new variants can also be fired as missiles, while the older version had to be dropped from aircraft.
The Kremlin did not say what form the “countermeasures” might take, but one source said a possible option would be the deployment of nuclear-capable Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad, Russia’s Baltic enclave. “A final decision will be taken after detailed analysis of the potential threat,” a military source told Interfax, a Russian news agency.
A Pentagon spokesman said it would not comment on the specifics of which weapons were located where, and there was no change to the US nuclear “posture”.