Russian president Vladimir Putin said that Moscow could include possibility of a pre-emptive strike in its military doctrine, in an apparent reference to nuclear attack while speaking with reporters in Kyrghyzstan.
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The reference to pre-emptive strike came in an answer to a reporter’s question who asked Vladimir Putin to clarify his statement on use of nuclear weapons. The Russian president said Moscow was considering whether to adopt what he called Washington’s concept of a pre-emptive strike.
“First of all, the United States has the concept of a preemptive strike. Second, it is developing a disarming strike system,” Vladimir Putin said.
Moscow might need to think about adopting US “ideas for ensuring their own security”, he added.
“We’re just thinking about it. If a potential adversary believes that it is possible to use the concept of a preemptive strike, but we do not, then nevertheless this makes us think about the threats that such ideas pose to us,” Vladimir Putin said.
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Earlier this week, Vladimir Putin warned that nuclear tensions were rising, although he insisted that Moscow would not be the first to deploy atomic weapons.
“If we aren’t the first to use them under any circumstances, then we will not be the second to use them either,” he had then said.
