This week, Russia’s leading nuclear official stated that Moscow is confronting “colossal threats” and must modernize its .
Without explicitly identifying the source of Russia’s primary nuclear threat, Alexei Likhachev, Director General of the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, commented that “the current geopolitical situation is a time of colossal threats to the existence of our country.”
He further added, as reported by Russian state news agency RIA, “Therefore, the nuclear shield, which is also a sword, is a guarantee of our sovereignty.” Likhachev emphasized, “We understand today that the nuclear shield must only be improved in the coming years.”
These remarks came less than a week after a face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and President , marking the first time a U.S. leader had met with the Kremlin chief since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
While Trump and Putin projected a positive image following their discussions, the meeting appeared to achieve little in concrete terms, and hopes for a Russia- ceasefire seemingly diminished as the week progressed.
The reasons for Likhachev’s timing in making comments regarding Russia’s nuclear program are not clear, and he did not specify what kind of updates he intended for Moscow’s “shield” program.
Earlier this year, in May, Trump issued similar comments when he announced his plans to a missile defense system — inspired by Israel’s “Iron Dome” defense system — which is estimated to cost at least $175 billion.
Even though security experts have been raising alarms concerning , Russia and the U.S. together still possess 90% of the world’s nuclear arsenal.
According to the Arms Control Association, Moscow continues to hold nearly 4,400 nuclear warheads, with over 1,500 of them “strategically deployed,” while the U.S. possesses more than 3,700 warheads in its stockpiles, with 1,400 deployed.
While nuclear disarmament was the established international objective after the Cold War, the direction of this policy remains questionable as relations between Washington and Moscow have again turned precarious amid Putin’s war in Ukraine and his growing relationship with Chinese President .
The remains the sole bilateral nuclear arms control agreement between the U.S. and Russia; although it was extended in 2021, it is scheduled to expire in February 2026. The future of the treaty, first signed in 2010, also remains uncertain as Moscow suspended its participation in the agreement in 2023.
said that this suspension meant he would continue to abide by stockpile limits under the treaty, but he would not permit continued U.S. inspections.
Digital could not immediately reach the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for comment, as nations are increasingly looking to expand their nuclear capabilities just six months before the New Start Treaty is set to expire.