The US yesterday played down Russia's new national security concept, saying it did not represent a significant shift that would make Moscow more likely to use nuclear weapons.
"We . . . do not believe that it represents a significant, major departure from Russia's concept issued in 1997 or that it makes the use of nuclear weapons more likely," said the State Department spokesman.
Mr James Rubin was giving the first formal US response to the plan, announced by Moscow on Friday. Under the 1997 concept, Russia reserved the right to use its nuclear arsenal only if its very existence were threatened.
The new version, approved by Acting President Vladimir Putin on January 6th, envisages the potential use of atomic weapons "to repel armed aggression".