Russia’s ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was revoked on Thursday after President Vladimir Putin signed a measure that he says is meant to bring Russia in line with the United States.

Russia claims that the de-ratification does not alter its nuclear posture or the way in which it exchanges information about its nuclear programs and that it will not resume testing unless Washington does.
Putin had stated that he wanted Russia, which had signed and approved the 1996 treaty, to take the same position on the agreement as Washington, which had signed but never ratified the treaty.
Some Western arms control specialists are concerned that Russia may be inching towards a test to frighten and provoke terror amid the Ukraine crisis, a concept Russian officials have played down.
After appeals from some Russian security experts and MPs to test a nuclear bomb as a warning to the West, Putin indicated on Oct. 5 that he was not ready to say whether or not Russia should resume nuclear testing.
Western experts worry that such a step could herald in a new era of large-scale nuclear testing.
The government website announced Putin’s acceptance of the de-ratification law with immediate effect.
The move has been accepted by both chambers of the Russian parliament.
Post-Soviet No nuclear test has ever been conducted by Russia. The United States conducted its final nuclear test in 1992 and the Soviet Union in 1990.