Russia to Factor Germany's Nuclear Research into Military Strategy

MOSCOW, July 21. /TASS/. Germany's nuclear weapons research will be taken into account in Russia's military strategy, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko told journalists.

"We have recently seen significant changes in the legislation of a number of countries that are moving towards the possibility of hosting US and other nuclear weapons on their territories. Concepts such as the French European nuclear umbrella are at the fore. This is why what Germany is doing is not surprising, especially considering the country's high technological and industrial potential. Of course, these are realities that must also be taken into account in our military planning," he said, responding to a request from TASS to comment on the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service's statement about Germany's intention to field nuclear weapons.

"We see that this line is generally aligned with the general line of the West, primarily the NATO countries, which is consistently strengthening the role of the nuclear component not only in military strategies, but also in military planning," Grushko said. "As you know, the alliance has self-proclaimed its nuclear status. By the way, all strategic concepts state that as long as there are nuclear weapons in the world, the alliance will remain nuclear, although this directly violates the provisions of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons."

Earlier, the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service said that Germany's intention to gain direct access to nuclear weapons is causing extreme concern in Europe, given the revanchist sentiments in Berlin.