Russia blocks US move at UN on nuclear weapons in space

25/4/2024 12:12

        Russia vetoed on Wednesday a U.S.-drafted United Nations Security Council resolution that called on countries to prevent an arms race in outer space, a move that the United States says suggests Moscow might be "hiding something."
        
        "It's a joke of a resolution," Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia told reporters ahead of the vote.
        
        The vote came after Washington accused Moscow of developing a space-based anti-satellite nuclear weapon, an allegation that Russia has denied. Speaking ahead of the vote by the 15-member council, U.S. administration officials declined to share details of intelligence they had to back the allegation.
        
        Deputy U.S. Ambassador Robert Wood told reporters ahead of the vote that if Russia did not vote for the resolution "it makes you wonder whether they're hiding something."
        
        The draft Security Council resolution was put to a vote by the U.S. and Japan after nearly six weeks of negotiations. It received 13 votes in favor, while China abstained and Russia cast a veto.
        
        Russian President Vladimir Putin said earlier this year that Russia was against the deployment of nuclear weapons in space.