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Russia perceives political message in recent US nuke blast at Nevada test site — diplomat

According to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov, Moscow’s "further policy alignments" will hinge on this critical factor

MOSCOW, October 25. /TASS/. An underground blast carried out at a US nuclear test site in Nevada represented a political message for Moscow to remain vigilant, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said.

"It is definitely a political message. We must remain vigilant. As our president said, if the United States makes a move towards full-scale nuclear tests, we will have to give a reciprocal response in this field, too," the senior diplomat said at a plenary session of the Federation Council (upper house of parliament).

According to Ryabkov, Russia’s "further policy alignments" will hinge on this critical factor.

On October 18, the US Energy Department disclosed that a subsurface chemical explosion had been conducted at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) "to improve the United States’ ability to detect low-yield nuclear explosions around the world."

Vladimir Yermakov, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Department, stated earlier that, in Moscow’s view, the US had not abandoned plans to conduct a nuclear test.