Russia has said that it will deliver an “appropriate response” if the US chooses to place nuclear weapons in the UK.
The chilling warning was issued by Gennady Galitov, Moscow’s permanent representative to the UN, who spoke on the Rossiya-24 TV channel.
He said that Russia is closely watching the US’s reported plans to station its nuclear weapons in Britain, the Baltics, and Poland, state news agency TASS reported.
Galitov said: “We are monitoring these reports. Possibly, it is about recommissioning an airbase with US nuclear weapons in Britain. There have been speculations about sending nuclear weapons to the Baltics and Poland. All this breeds tensions.
Russia has said that it will deliver an 'appropriate response' if the US decides to station nuclear weapons in Britain
Getty/Reuters/PA
“We are following these developments. Of course, if this is true, Russia will be forced to respond accordingly.”
His comments come just days after plans to station nuclear weapons on UK soil were reported.
Documents from the Pentagon revealed that the US is planning to place warheads three times the strength of the Hiroshima bomb in Britain at a Royal Air Force station - the first time nukes have been stationed in the country by the US in 15 years.
Nuclear missiles were previously placed at RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk, which is operated by the US Air Force. However, they were removed in 2008.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:
Gennady Galitov, issued the chilling warning
Getty
The Kremlin has replied saying that it would view this move as an "escalation" and it would be met with "counter-measures".
The B61-12 gravity bombs, as well as ballistic shields, will be stationed "imminently" at RAF Lakenheath, according to the documents.
The Pentagon files show that construction of a housing facility for American soldiers at the base will start in June.
The UK's Ministry of Defence said of the reports: “It remains a longstanding UK and NATO policy to neither confirm nor deny the presence of nuclear weapons at a given location.”
The US Department of Defence has also refused to comment on the rumours.
Speaking of the last time the US stationed missiles in the UK, Pentagon spokesman Eric Pahon said: “While at RAF Lakenheath, deputy secretary toured infrastructure improvements designed to improve base resilience and support for the base’s F-35 squadron and see demonstrations of US capabilities.”
General Sir Patrick Sanders has said that Britain should brace itself to fight a war in the futurePAThere has been growing speculation about the possibility of a global conflict, with Defence Secretary Grant Shapps warning the world was "'moving from a post-war to pre-war world".
Last week, Lord William Hague stated that the UK must reinstate national service ahead of a potential crisis.
The former Foreign Secretary, who also served as Leader of the Opposition from 1997 to 2001, suggested Britain could emulate Norway's National Service scheme, which sees one in five 18-year-olds having to serve in the armed forces for a year or longer.
Writing in The Times, Lord Hague said: “The blunt truth is that the chances of getting through the next couple of decades without a dangerous world crisis are small.”
Last month, General Sir Patrick Sanders suggested that civilians should be trained to form a “citizen army” ready to fight a war in the future.
Despite the general’s suggestion, Downing Street insisted there were no plans for conscription.
