Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said any new arms race would weaken Russia's economic opportunties, but warned that it was still capable of defending itself.

A senior Russian official has told reporters that Russia is not planning to enter a new arms race, but nontheless remains ready to react to any threats against it.

“Russia is trying to react to new threats, nothing more than this. We are not entering an arms race, we are against any arms race as it would weaken our opportunities in the economic sphere,” Reuters quoted Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov as saying. “We are in general against this. I think that our president has made very precise statements on this matter.”

Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin stunned the West when he announced that Russia will add 40 new intercontinental ballistic missiles to the country's nuclear arsenal later this year. Putin said the missiles are “capable of penetrating the most modern defences”, and vowed to push forward with the rearmament of the military.

Not surprisingly, Western leaders reacted with predictable outrage to the news. John Kerry, the U.S. Secretary of State, said the plan was concerning and indicated Russia was making a reversal in the disarmament sphere. NATO's Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg went even further, slamming the announcement as “unjustified, destabilizing and dangerous”, even though the U.S. is pursuing its own plans to build a global missile defence shield across Europe.

While President Putin has repeatedly said Russia wouldn't be dragged into a new arms race, earlier this week he warned the West that the country was prepared to target its military at any threats it faced.

Previously, Putin has called on the international community to create legally-binding guarantees that weapons such as the U.S.'s missile defence shield will not be targeted at Russia. Putin said last week that statements from Western leaders like “We promise that nothing will happen” amount to nothing in the current climate, adding, “We need guarantees and serious agreements in the security sphere.”

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