US Plans for upgrading Nuclear Weapons in Germany Alarm Russia — Foreign Ministry

• US Plans for upgrading Nuclear Weapons in Germany Alarm Russia — Foreign Ministry
  by http://tass.ru/en , 22 Sept 2015  
  Tactical US nuclear weapons remain operational in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and Turkey.
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  MOSCOW, September 22. /TASS/. Russia finds worrisome Washington’s plans for upgrading US nuclear weapons in Germany and other European countries, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova has told the German TV broadcaster ZDF in an interview.
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  Asked for the Russian government’s opinion of plans for upgrading US nuclear weapons in Germany Zahkarova replied: “We find such plans alarming.” She recalled that back in the 1990s Russia slashed its arsenal of non-strategic nuclear weapons 75%, changed their status to non-operational and stored them within its national territory.
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  “In the meantime, tactical US nuclear weapons remain operational in Europe, and not only in Germany, but also in Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and Turkey. The Americans are upgrading their air bombs, and NATO’s European members, their nuclear-capable aircraft. This policy was confirmed at NATO’s summits in Chicago (2012) and Wales (in 2014),” Zakharova said.
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  NATO’s practice of nuclear sharing is also a concern for Russia. 
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  “Exercises involving preparations and instruction in the use of nuclear weapons by the military of personnel of non-nuclear states are a direct violation of articles one and two of the NPT treaty. This abnormal situation has remained for more than 40 years, but it is not getting more acceptable,” Zakharova said.
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  “For maintaining security and stability in Europe we believe it is necessary to return non-strategic nuclear weapons to the national territory, establish a ban on their deployment outside the national territory, eliminate the related infrastructures outside the national territory that allow for the prompt deployment of such weapons, and put an end to training and exercises related with matters of preparing and using nuclear weapons by the personnel of the armed forces that do not possess such weapons,” Zakharova said.
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