Russia’s top nuclear official this week said Moscow is facing “colossal threats” and needs to update its nuclear capabilities.

Without directly naming where Russia’s chief nuclear threat is coming from, Director General of the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom Alexei Likhachev said, “the current geopolitical situation, is a time of colossal threats to the existence of our country.”

“Therefore, the nuclear shield, which is also a sword, is a guarantee of our sovereignty,” he added, according to Russian state news agency RIA. “We understand today that the nuclear shield must only be improved in the coming years.”

Image shows data from Federation of American Scientists indicating that there are 12,331 nuclear weapons as of 2025.  (FederaGraphic by Visual Capitalist via Getty Images)

Moscow continues to hold nearly 4,400 nuclear warheads, over 1,500 of which are “strategically deployed” while the U.S. possesses more than 3,700 warheads in its stockpiles with 1,400 deployed, according to the Arms Control Association. 

While nuclear disarmament was the standing international goal following the end of the Cold War, the trajectory of this policy remains dubious as relations between Washington and Moscow have once again turned precarious amid Putin’s war in Ukraine, and his burgeoning relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

The New Start Treaty remains the only bilateral nuclear arms control agreement between the U.S. and Russia, and though it was extended in 2021, it is set to expire in February 2026. The future of the treaty – first signed in 2010 – also remains unclear as Moscow paused its participation in the agreement in 2023.

Russian military vehicles, including Yars intercontinental ballistic missile launchers, roll on Red Square during the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 9, 2024.   (Alexander Nemenov/AFP via Getty Images)

Putin said that this suspension meant he would continue to abide by stockpile limits under the treaty, but he would not allow for continued U.S. inspections. 

Fox News Digital could not immediately reach the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for comment as nations increasingly look to expand their nuclear capabilities just six months ahead of when the New Start Treaty is set to expire.