Russian President Vladimir Putin said during a meeting with high-ranking officers and prosecutors that Russia will continue expanding its defense potential, however, it is ready to do everything to promote disarmament.
"Our army and our fleet have proven their high capabilities," Putin stressed. "And we plan to continue expanding our defense potential, putting hypersonic and laser systems on alert along with other modern arms systems, which other countries do not possess so far," TASS cited the Russian leader as saying.
However, for Russia this is "not a cause to threaten someone," he pointed out.
"On the contrary, we are ready to do everything in our power to promote disarmament taking into account or new arms systems, whose only goal is to guarantee security among the growing threats we are facing," the Russian president stressed.
The editor-in-chief of 'National Defense' magazine, Igor Korotchenko, speaking with the correspondent of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that now, when the United States withdraws from all fundamental treaties that ensure world military-political stability, the prospect of disarmament has become illusory. "Most likely, there will be no disarmament in the near future. Our initiatives don't meet any positive response from opponents. Therefore, an arms race seems inevitable. The question is how to minimize the costs required by the race," he said.
"In general, the main measures for the rearmament of the Russian army and navy have already been taken. In fact, 70% of our weapon are new now. The main thing now is to understand whether there will be new American nuclear missiles in Europe aimed at Russia after the U.S. withdraws from the INF Treaty or not. My forecast is pessimistic: the Americans will deploy the strike system in Europe, and we will have to retaliate under these conditions," Igor Korotchenko stressed.
"I think that Russia's main efforts will be focused on building up the aerospace defense system with the guaranteed ability to repulse the enemy’s first strike and the priority of developing strategic nuclear forces, primarily, bearing in mind the potential of a military strike and the reliable functioning of the missile attack notification system," the editor-in-chief of 'National Defense' magazine expressed confidence.
