Months after some of the world's biggest powers, including the United States, entered into a deal with Iran to stop enriching its nuclear capacity, Russian President Vladimir Putin openly said his country will continue developing nuclear weapons.
In a documentary called "World Order" aired over Russia's state-controlled television, Putin said nuclear weapons are integral parts of his country's security policies.
"Russia as a leading nuclear country will be improving this weapon as a containment factor; the nuclear triad is the basis of our nuclear security policies," the Russian leader said, as quoted by CBS News.
The "nuclear triad" includes three main delivery systems for nuclear warheads—bombers, intercontinental ballistic missiles and submarine-launched ICBMs.
The Russian President, who has been at loggerheads with the U.S. over issues such as the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine, was however quick in saying that his country does not intend to use these nuclear weapons.
"We have never brandished or will brandish this nuclear club, but our military doctrine allocates it a place and role," Putin said.
Last month, Putin also publicly pledged to counter the missile defence programme being developed by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, saying it was Moscow's way of developing "decisive military superiority."
In a related news, a spokesperson of Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump made controversial remarks about the U.S. stance on nuclear weapons, and blasted other Republican candidates for supposedly being all talk about this issue.
In an interview on Fox News' "The O'Reilly Factor," Trump spokesperson Katrina Pearson questioned if it is any good for the U.S. to have nuclear weapons while hesitating to use them.
"What good does it do to have a good nuclear triad if you're afraid to use it?" Pierson asked, as quoted by Raw Story.
"And that's where we are today and we need to fix these problems. Not just complaining and name-calling about who started this and who started that," she added.
