Earlier this week, it was reported that the United States had accelerated the deployment of a modernized B61-12 nuclear bomb at NATO bases in Europe, hoping to have them delivered by the end of 2022 rather than 2023. A Pentagon spokesperson told Sputnik on Thursday that he was aware of the reports but had nothing to announce at this time.
"In this regard, I once again urge Washington to return all nuclear weapons stationed abroad to national territory and to eliminate the foreign infrastructure for their storage and maintenance. Also, to stop the practice of testing the use of such munitions with the involvement of military personnel of non-nuclear states, as part of NATO ‘joint nuclear missions,’ contrary to the fundamental principles of the NPT (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons)," Antonov said.
He stressed that the Russian arsenal of weapons of a similar class does not pose a threat to the United States, despite "speculation" that it is many times larger than the American one.
"All of our TNW [tactical nuclear weapons] are located in centralized storage facilities in Russia and cannot pose a threat to the United States," the ambassador said.
The delivery of the upgraded version of the B61-12 nuclear bomb was originally scheduled for the spring of 2023, but, according to a diplomatic cable, US officials told NATO allies during a closed meeting in Brussels in October that the deployment is now expected by December.
The decision was made in light of the Ukraine crisis and perceived threats emanating from Russia, although the Pentagon has refrained from explicitly drawing any links, according to US media reports.
In December 2021, it was reported that the US defense industry had handed over to the Pentagon the first production sample of the upgraded B61-12 atomic bomb. The B61 aerial bomb has been in service since 1968 with several modifications. The new bomb can be dropped from the B2 and B-21 strategic bombers, as well as F-15, F-16, F-35, and Tornado fighter jets.