By Michael Hernandez
WASHINGTON (AA) - Russia has informed the US it will conduct its annual nuclear forces exercise, the Biden administration said Tuesday amid soaring tensions with the Kremlin.
The Pentagon and State Department said Moscow is complying with its arms control obligations with the notification, describing the exercise as "routine."
The State Department added that the US was informed of forthcoming intercontinental ballistic missile and submarine-launched ballistic missile tests, saying Russia followed "appropriate protocols.”
"While Russia engages in unprovoked aggression and reckless nuclear rhetoric, these notification measures do ensure we're not taken by surprise and reduce the risks of misperception," State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters.
The comments come as relations between Moscow and Washington have hit lows not seen since the Cold War as Russia continues to pursue its “military operation” in neighboring Ukraine. Russia recently alleged that Kyiv's forces are preparing to use an improvised nuclear device known as a "dirty bomb.”
Ukraine and its Western allies have dismissed the charge, saying Russia is using the accusation as cover for its own use of a dirty bomb.
A dirty bomb combines conventional explosives with radioactive materials that spread across an area following detonation.
The US, France and UK flatly rejected the suggestion Sunday, saying in a joint statement that each of their defense ministers "made clear" in separate phone calls with Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu "that we all reject Russia’s transparently false allegations that Ukraine is preparing to use a dirty bomb on its own territory."