Washington: We Won’t Change Our Nuclear Stance in Response to Moscow

A spokesman for the U.S. National Security Council said on Tuesday that the United States was not surprised by the change announced by Russia regarding its nuclear doctrine and has no plans to adjust its nuclear stance in response.

“As we said this month, we were not surprised by Russia’s announcement that it will update its nuclear doctrine; Russia indicated its intention weeks ago… the same irresponsible rhetoric from Russia,” the spokesman said in a statement.

Russian President Vladimir Putin approved an amendment today that allows a nuclear strike in response to a wider range of conventional weapons attacks, with Moscow saying Ukraine targeted Russian territory with U.S.-made ATACMS missiles.

“We have not observed any changes in Russia’s nuclear stance, nor do we see any reason to adjust our stance or nuclear doctrine in response to Russia’s statements today,” the statement said.

The statement also mentioned Russia’s use of North Korean forces in Ukraine, which was described as a significant escalation.