Russia is considering taking steps to resume nuclear tests according to Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.
Ryabkov gave the chilling warning as he cautioned against US president-elect Donald Trump from conducting nuclear testing in an interview with Russia newspaper Kommersant.
Such a move would be significant escalation of tensions which are currently at their highest since the Cold War following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Neither country has conducted a nuclear test since the early 1990s but it is believed that the Trump administration did consider doing so during his first term in office, something Ryabkov described as “extremely hostile” toward Russia.
Russia signed the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), which prohibits nuclear explosions for civilian or military purposes, in 1996 and ratified it in 2000.
However, after launching his illegal war in Ukraine, Putin withdrew Russia from the agreement, bringing the country in line with the United States who are one of eight nations not to have ratified the agreement.
Speaking about the possibility of tests Ryabkov said: “I would simply like to say in this regard that the international situation is currently extremely difficult, American policy in its various aspects is today extremely hostile toward us.
“So the options for us to act in the interests of ensuring security and the potential measures and actions we have to do this—and to send politically appropriate signals…does not rule anything out,” according to translators from Reuters.
Most nuclear powers are currently in the process of upgrading their nuclear arsenals as they seek to modernise their capability in the face of rising global tensions.
There are fears that the United States is considering resuming nuclear tests as a means of developing new weapons and demonstrating strength to countries threatening their global hegemony.
Russia possesses 5,580 warheads, whilst the United States has 5,044, meaning the two nations control 88% of the world’s nuclear weapons.
It remains unclear what approach the new Trump administration will take in respect of Russia.
Throughout the election campaign, Trump repeatedly claimed that he would be able to end the war in Ukraine on his first day in office, although details on how this would be achieved remain to be seen.
The president-elect has spoken openly about his respect for the Russian leader as well as positive relationship which has included several phone calls between the pair since Trump left office in 2021.