Russia announced Tuesday that it will expand its nuclear arsenal, sparking concerns about a renewed arms race as old Cold War rivals Moscow and Washington plan to increase their military capacity amid rising tensions over Ukraine.
Russia will acquire 40 intercontinental ballistic missiles “capable of overcoming any, even the most technically sophisticated, missile defense systems,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said at an arms expo outside Moscow on Tuesday, just days after the Pentagon confirmed plans to place more heavy equipment in NATO countries in Eastern Europe and the Baltics.
Secretary of State John F. Kerry called the announcement concerning, even if Putin “could well be posturing.”
