Putin signs CTBT deratization law
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law on the cancellation of the ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT). The document was posted on the official legal information portal on 2 November.
As stated, the Act comes into force on the date of its promulgation.
The CTBT was adopted in September 1996. The document provides for a ban on testing and any other nuclear explosions for civilian or military purposes anywhere. A number of countries, including the United States, have not yet ratified it, while Russia did so in 2000.
On 30 October, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu noted that the West's claims against Russia regarding the alleged lowering of the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, including over the withdrawal of ratification of the CTBT, are unfounded. He recalled that the country's relevant doctrine contains only two provisions under which its use is permissible: in response to an enemy strike or in the event of a threat to the existence of the state.
On 20 October, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov described the withdrawal of the ratification of the treaty as mirroring the situation with the United States. According to him, Russia has no plans to change its position on the actions specified in the treaty and has withdrawn ratification only because the United States does not intend to confirm its participation.
Back in June, Putin said that the Russian Federation did not need to use nuclear weapons. He recalled that the United States had twice attacked the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The head of state pointed out that the United States is the only state in the world that has used nuclear weapons against a non-nuclear state.
(Izvestia/RoZ)
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