WASHINGTON (Sputnik), Leandra Bernstein — Russian allegations of the provocative nature of the recent US atomic bomb test can be dismissed, US Assistant Secretary of State at the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation Thomas Countryman told Sputnik on Thursday.
“I don’t mean to be flippant, but the Russian Defense Ministry accusing others of being provocative, it is hard for me to take that seriously,” Countryman said.
On July 1, 2015, the United States conducted a flight test of a dormant B-61 12 atomic bomb. The test was conducted as part of the US program to extend the life of the B-61 bomb and modernize its nuclear arsenal.
Antonov accused the United States of conducting the test to examine the possibility of NATO fighter-bombers stationed in Europe using the bomb.
US officials have been highly critical of the Russian nuclear modernization program, and have also raised concerns over Russia's updated military doctrine, which reasserts the importance of its strategic nuclear deterrent.
The United States tested the bomb only weeks before the August 6th 70th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the only time a country has ever used a nuclear weapon against an adversary.
