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Russia pins future of nuclear test ban on US actions

It is reported that at the meeting, Sergey Ryabkov and Robert Floyd focused on cooperation between Russia and the CTBTO

MOSCOW, April 22. /TASS/. While Russia remains committed to the moratorium on nuclear tests, maintaining this line further down the road will very much depend on the US, the Russian Foreign Ministry said following a meeting between Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov and Robert Floyd, Executive Secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO).

"Sergey Ryabkov explained to Robert Floyd in detail why Russia revoked its ratification of the CTBT Treaty as he emphasized that our commitment to the treaty and the 1992 ban [on Russian nuclear testing] imposed by a Russian presidential decree remains unchanged," the ministry said in a statement. However, it added, "whether this policy will be maintained further depends entirely on what the US does." "Russia remains a signatory to the CTBT Treaty, with all the rights and obligations that come with that," the ministry said.

According to it, at the meeting, Ryabkov and Floyd focused on cooperation between Russia and the CTBTO.

They highlighted Russia’s major contribution to the operation of the CTBTO, in particular the recent completion of the Russian segment of the international monitoring system (IMS), the world’s second largest.