"Preparing for real nuclear weapons tests takes time, and we certainly cannot find ourselves in a situation where the United States will test it, and we will be preparing for it for another year and a half. Well, of course, we have to think about it already. We did not say that, but we have to be prepared for any eventuality. And, I assure you, we will be ready," Putin told reporters after his visit to Kyrgyzstan.
Russia will raise the issue of US preparations for nuclear tests during the anticipated upcoming bilateral talks, Putin stated.
In late October, US President Donald Trump said that he had instructed the Department of War to immediately resume nuclear testing. He then specified that his order was due to "others doing testing" and it was "appropriate" for the US to keep up.
A US nuclear test would end a long-standing ban on such tests. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted on November 13 that if other nations were to conduct such tests, Russia, as President Putin has repeatedly said, would act accordingly.