DHAKA: President Vladimir Putin said Russia will add more than 40 intercontinental ballistic missiles to its nuclear arsenal in 2015.

Speaking at an arms fair, Putin said the weapons would be able to overcome even the most technically advanced anti-missile defense systems.

It comes after the US proposed increasing its military presence in NATO states in Eastern Europe, reports the BBC.

Tensions are high over Russia’s role in the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

NATO and Western leaders accuse Russia of sending soldiers and heavy weapons including tanks and missiles to the pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. Russia has repeatedly denied this, insisting that any Russians fighting there are ‘volunteers’.

BDST: 1838 HRS, JUNE 16, 2015
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