“There can be no winners in a nuclear war.” Russia, USA, UK, China and France issued a joint statement

Russia, the United States, China, Great Britain and France issued a joint statement on the prevention of nuclear war and the prevention of an arms race. Text published on the Kremlin website.

“We declare that there can be no winners in a nuclear war and it should never be unleashed. Since the use of nuclear weapons would have far-reaching consequences, we also reaffirm that nuclear weapons – as long as they continue to exist – must serve defensive purposes, deter aggression and prevent war. We believe that the further proliferation of such weapons must be prevented.

We reaffirm the importance of countering nuclear threats and underline the importance of maintaining and adhering to our bilateral and multilateral agreements and commitments in the area of ​​non-proliferation, disarmament and arms control. We remain committed to our obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), including our commitment under Article VI “in good faith to negotiate effective measures to end the nuclear arms race in the near future and nuclear disarmament, as well as the General and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control. “

Each of us intends to maintain and further strengthen our national measures to prevent the unauthorized or unintentional use of nuclear weapons. We reiterate the relevance of our earlier non-targeting statements and reaffirm that our nuclear weapons are not aimed at each other or at any other State.

We underline our commitment to work with all nations to create a security environment more conducive to progress on disarmament with the ultimate goal of building a nuclear-weapon-free world without compromising anyone’s security. We intend to continue to seek bilateral and multilateral diplomatic approaches to avoid military confrontation, enhance stability and predictability, enhance mutual understanding and trust, and prevent an arms race that benefits no one and becomes a threat to all. We are determined to conduct a constructive dialogue based on mutual respect and recognition of each other’s security interests and concerns, ”the joint statement said.

Recall that in 2019, Vladimir Putin signed a law suspending Russia’s participation in the Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles. Military columnist Alexander Golts in his column for The Insider explainedwhy the threat of a nuclear war between Russia and the United States is becoming more and more real.