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Japanese foreign minister claims Russia boosting nuclear potential on unilateral basis

The Japanese top diplomat comments on Vladimir Putin’s State of the Nation Address to the Federal Assembly
Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono EPA-EFE/SERGEI CHIRIKOV
Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono
© EPA-EFE/SERGEI CHIRIKOV

TOKYO, March 2. /TASS/. Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono claimed on Friday that Russia and China were increasing their nuclear arsenals on a unilateral basis.

"After the end of the Cold War, the United States has been consistently reducing its nuclear armaments. However, Russia and China have been boosting them, and this is the fact," the minister said.

The Japanese top diplomat commented on Russian President Vladimir Putin’s State of the Nation Address to the Federal Assembly on Thursday.

In his speech, Putin said that Russia had launched the development and testing of state-of-the-art systems of strategic arms, such as the Sarmat heavy intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) and the Kinzhal hypersonic complex, being created in response to Washington’s withdrawal from the ABM Treaty on a unilateral basis and practical deployment of the system on the US territory and beyond, including in Japan.

Russia has also created a small-size super-powerful nuclear power plant that can be installed on a cruise missile, which will ensure an unlimited flight range and invulnerability to missile and air defense systems, Putin said. Russia has also developed an unmanned underwater vehicle capable of carrying nuclear warheads, he said.