nuclear-news

Trump’s nuclear comments are ‘nothing special’ , says Putin

Russia’s Vladimir Putin says Donald Trump’s nuclear comments are ‘nothing special’  http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-12-23/putin-says-does-not-dispute-us-military-most-powerful-in-world/8146200  Russian President Vladimir Putin said he does not dispute that the US military is the world’s most powerful, and that US President-elect Donald Trump’s statement about the need to boost his country’s nuclear weapons capability was perfectly normal.

Mr Trump on Thursday called for an expansion of the United States’ nuclear capabilities, in a tweet that alarmed non-proliferation experts who said that a boost to the US arsenal could fuel global tensions.

Mr Putin told a news conference in Moscow he was surprised by the fuss Mr Trump’s tweet had caused and how it had been linked to his own statements about Russia’s plans to modernise its nuclear arsenal. He said Mr Trump’s statement about overhauling US nuclear forces was “nothing special”.

“[Trump] spoke during his election campaign about the need to beef up the US nuclear arsenal and the armed forces,” said Mr Putin.

Mr Putin said on Thursday Russia’s military was “stronger than any potential aggressor”.

The Russian leader made clear on Friday he did not regard the United States as a potential aggressor.

“I was a bit surprised by the statements from some representatives of the current US administration who for some reason started to prove that the US military was the most powerful in the world,” said Mr Putin.

“Nobody is arguing with that.”

December 24, 2016 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | general