Trump confident Washington will win if US-Russia arms race breaks out
(Baonghean.vn) - In an interview with NBC on March 29, a US official said that President Donald Trump told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin that Washington is ready for an arms race.
 |
| Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump. Photo: AP |
According to the above official, in the phone call between the Russian and US leaders on March 20, President Trump emphasized: "If you want an arms race, we can do that, but we will win."
During the phone call, the US President also congratulated Mr. Putin on his re-election as President of Russia in the recent presidential election. After the phone call, President Trump expressed his desire to hold a summit with his counterpart Putin in the "near future".
Earlier, on March 1, in his speech to the National Assembly, President Putin mentioned the remarkable development of Russian weapons. Mr. Putin emphasized that Russia does not threaten anyone and has no intention of attacking anyone, but affirmed that these newly developed weapons are aimed at "ensuring the country's security".
Recently, tensions between Russia and the US have increased, related to Moscow's alleged attack on former double agent Skripal in the UK. Both countries have continuously responded strongly to each other, with the expulsion of dozens of each other's diplomats./.
NATO assesses alliance readiness in case of conflict with Russia
Only a few thousand NATO troops out of the alliance's more than one million troops are prepared for rapid deployment in the event of a conflict with Russia, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing current and former alliance officials.
Russia expels 60 diplomats, closes US consulate in St. Petersburg
In response to the US actions in the "Skripal case", Russia will close the US Consulate General in St. Petersburg, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced.