The Russian President's Press Secretary: We are certain that Russia and China have not conducted nuclear weapon tests

Russian President's Press Secretary Peskov said in an interview that Russia and China have not conducted nuclear weapon tests.

TASS reported that Peskov, during an interview with journalist Zarubin of the "Russia-1" television program "Moscow - Kremlin - Putin," stated, "We are certain that neither Russia nor China has conducted nuclear weapon tests."

Peskov continued, saying that President Putin has repeatedly clearly stated that Moscow adheres to its obligations. Peskov also assured that if the United States or any other country conducts similar tests, Russia will respond in kind.

On Wednesday, Russian Defense Minister Belousov said at a security meeting that he believes it is time to start preparing for the resumption of nuclear tests at the Novaya Zemlya nuclear test site. Putin ordered the collection and analysis of more information and coordination of proposals submitted by various parties regarding the preparation for such tests.

Peskov explained in the interview, "After discussion, the President ordered the Russian Federation Security Council to study this issue in an interdepartmental manner and to begin preparations to determine whether nuclear tests can be conducted."

Previously, US President Trump claimed that China and Russia secretly conducted nuclear weapon tests and used this as a reason to order the US to also conduct nuclear tests - although the specific meaning of this order remains unclear.

Trump told reporters during an interview with the CBS "60 Minutes" program, "Russia is conducting (nuclear) tests, and China is also conducting (nuclear) tests, but they don't talk about it. You know, we are an open society. We are different. We talk about it. We must talk about it, otherwise you will report - they don't have reporters who will report on this. We do. No, we will conduct nuclear tests because they are doing it, and other countries are also doing it. Of course, North Korea has been conducting (nuclear) tests. Pakistan has also been conducting (nuclear) tests."

Trump provided no evidence. The interview was recorded last Friday and aired on Sunday. Previously, just an hour before his meeting with Chinese officials in South Korea, Trump said that he had ordered the US military to immediately restart nuclear tests, which would be the first time in 33 years that the US military conducts nuclear tests "on equal terms."

On Monday, CIA Director John Ratcliffe posted on the social media platform X that Trump was "correct" and shared intelligence assessments that could be traced back to Trump's first term. The post included a text written by then-US Defense Intelligence Agency Director Robert P. Ashley Jr. in May 2019, stating, "The US believes that Russia may not have complied with the zero-yield standard for the nuclear test moratorium," as well as a screenshot of the title of an article published by the Wall Street Journal in April 2020 titled "China's Possible Nuclear Tests Raise Concerns in the US."

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning stated during a regular press conference on Monday that "China has always adhered to the path of peaceful development, implemented a policy of not being the first to use nuclear weapons, upheld a self-defense nuclear strategy, and abided by the commitment of 'a moratorium on nuclear tests.' We are willing to work with all parties to jointly safeguard the authority of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and maintain the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation system."

Mao Ning added, "We hope the US will genuinely abide by the obligations of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty and the commitment of 'a moratorium on nuclear tests,' and take concrete actions to protect the international nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation system, as well as global strategic balance and stability."

Sources: rfi

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1848329425622283/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.