US Development of New Warhead Increases Risk of Nuclear War - Lavrov

The statement by the Russian Foreign Minister comes two days after the National Nuclear Security Agency announced that the US had begun manufacturing an undisclosed number of W76-2 Initial Operational Capability [IOC] warheads.
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"As for the announcement about the launch of production for a new low-yield nuclear warhead in the United States, let me remind you that this topic was already included in last year’s review of Washington’s nuclear policy. Even then we expressed serious concern that the development of such low-yield ammunition lowers the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons and, of course, increases the risks of a nuclear conflict", Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated Wednesday.

The minister also noted it is important to understand "what role Washington assigns to Europe and what role Europe is ready to play, considering that in the past Europe, willingly or not, played along with the US’s unilateral moves".

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He has also noted that Moscow would be following European countries’ reactions to the US producing a new nuclear warhead.

The warhead's design is a modification of the W76-1 for the Navy’s Trident ballistic missile, which, according to Defense News, is smaller than the weapon detonated at Hiroshima, Japan, near the end of World War II.

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