The U.S. intelligence community expects Russia to remain the country’s largest rival in terms of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD), the Office of the Director of National Intelligence reported on Tuesday.
“We assess that Russia will remain the largest and most capable WMD rival to the United States for the foreseeable future as it expands and modernises its nuclear weapons capabilities and increases the capabilities of its strategic and nonstrategic weapons,” it said.
The annual report suggests that Russia sees a credible nuclear weapons deterrent as the ultimate guarantor of its security in a potential conflict against the U.S. and NATO.
It has reportedly been expanding its set of nuclear-capable nonstrategic systems to counter U.S. and allied troops near its border.
