WASHINGTON — The Pentagon on Thursday has responded back to the RussianPresident Vladimir Putin claims of invincible nukes.

Pentagon dismissed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s boasts aboutdeveloping a new array of nuclear weapons, saying America’s missile defenseis ready to protect the nation but is not directed at Russia.

Putin claims that Moscow has tested weapons that cannot be intercepted andwould make NATO’s missile defense “useless.” That assertion does little tochange the long-standing nuclear standoff between the U.S. and Russia,which is rooted in deterrence and the reality that neither country wouldlaunch such weapons because doing so would mean mutual destruction. But itamps up the rhetoric and fuels worries about a new arms race.

“This is not about defense, it’s about deterrence,” said Pentagonspokeswoman Dana White, adding that the Defense Department was notsurprised by the weapons claims. She added that U.S. missile defenses arenot designed with Russia’s nuclear arsenal in mind, and Moscow knows this”very well.”

She added: “We need to ensure we have a credible nuclear deterrent, and weare confident that we are prepared to defend this nation no matter what.”

The U.S. has consistently argued that missile defense systems in Europe arenot aimed at Moscow, but rather designed to defend against threats fromIran and North Korea.

Russia has tested an array of new strategic nuclear weapons that can’t beintercepted, President Vladimir Putin declared Thursday, claiming atechnological breakthrough that could raise Western concerns about apotential renewed arms race. (March 1)

Putin, in a state-of-the-nation speech Thursday, said the new weaponsinclude a nuclear-powered cruise missile, a nuclear-powered underwaterdrone that could be armed with a nuclear warhead, and a hypersonic missilethat have no equivalent in the world. He said that Moscow had to developthe new weapons because the U.S. has developed a missile defense systemthat threatens to undermine Russia’s nuclear deterrent.

The claims come just a month after the Trump administration released itsnew nuclear policy, which took a more aggressive stance on the need todeter Russia.

The review said Russia must be convinced that it would face “unacceptablydire costs” if it were to threaten even a limited nuclear attack in Europe.It concluded that the U.S. should continue Obama administration plans tomodernize the nuclear arsenal, including new bomber aircraft, submarinesand land-based missiles. – Agencies