Russia has warned the United States, claiming their support for Ukraine is bringing them closer to a nuclear conflict.
Vladimir Yermakov, the head of nuclear non-proliferation at Russia's foreign ministry, told TASS news agency that the risks of a direct military confrontation between the two nuclear powers are steadily growing.
Yermakov stated that the U.S... was escalating the risks through its conduct with the Kremlin and suggested that Russia may withdraw from an intermediate and shorter-range nuclear missiles treaty. This latest threat is part of a series of regular charges from top Russian officials against the U.S. and what they call 'the collective West.'
"If the United States continues to follow its current course of confrontation with Russia, with the stakes constantly escalating on the verge of sliding into direct armed conflict, then the fate of START (nuclear arms treaty) may be a foregone conclusion," Yermakov said.
The United States has been a big supporter of Ukraine since Vladimir Putin invaded the country 14 months ago, committing over $70 billion to Kyiv's aid, with $43 billion going towards its military. Washington's military assistance includes the provision of HIMARS rocket launchers which were credited with dramatically changing the trajectory of the war.
Several HIMARS launches have struck deep behind enemy lines, with one attack on what was believed to be a military barracks killing dozens of Russian soldiers on New Year's Eve. Ukraine claimed it had killed around 400 Russian troops in the strike.
The U.S. has also pledged to deliver its state-of-the-art M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine and has said it will soon start training Kyiv's forces to use them in battle. American-made Patriot missiles also arrived in Ukraine last week, and military spokesman Yuriy Ihnat said Sunday on Ukrainian television that some have already gone into service.
Moscow has accused the U.S. of fighting a proxy war in Ukraine, while Washington has said it supports a sovereign nation in its fight against an aggressor.
Putin's invasion of Ukraine has plunged Moscow's relationship with the U.S. and other NATO nations to its lowest level since the Cold War. There are fears of a direct conflict between Russia and NATO that could spill over Ukraine's borders.
The suspension of the intermediate and shorter-range nuclear missiles treaty between Russia and the U.S. has led to fears of a nuclear arms race between the world's nuclear-armed superpowers.
The treaty obligated both countries to commit to regular communications on the status of their nuclear arsenals, allow regular on-site inspections, and abide by caps on the number of deployed and non-deployed warheads each would maintain.
With a reported 5,977 warheads, Russia has the world's most extensive nuclear arsenal - inherited from the Soviet Union - and up until the COVID pandemic, was subjected to constant inspections and control from the U.S., which comes in a close second.
Yermakov did not provide details of the alleged U.S. aggressive approach in the excerpts from the published TASS interview.
"The most acute threat today is associated...with the danger of nuclear escalation as a result of a direct military confrontation between nuclear powers," Yermakov said.
"And these risks, to the deepest regret, are steadily growing."
Moscow and Beijing will assess the West's potential involvement in the global expansion of the U.S. anti-missile system, which 'clearly undermines strategic stability,' he added.
He said Moscow would evaluate the range of American-made missiles that, he said, are capable of reaching the Asian-Pacific region.
"But even now we can say with confidence that the destabilizing U.S. military programs and their allies make our moratorium more and more fragile - both in the Asia-Pacific region and in Europe," Yermakov said.
Russian-appointed authorities in Crimea said on Monday that the military fended off a Ukrainian strike on a main naval base,
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