Putin issues sharp warning to US, vows to counter 'imperialism'

RUSSIA: President Vladimir Putin fired an acerbic broadside Thursday at the United States, condemning "imperialism" in world affairs and blaming Washington for igniting a new "arms race" that Russia would not ignore.

Speaking to reporters after talks with Greek President Carolos Papoulias, Putin said new tensions had emerged in international relations in recent years "because the world changed and there was an attempt to make it unipolar" following the disintegration of the Soviet Union.

In diplomatic parlance of the last decade, "unipolar" refers to a world dominated by the United States.

"There was a desire among several international actors to dictate their will to each and everyone and to act not in accordance with the norms of international life and law," he said. "This is very dangerous and unhealthy... In our view it is nothing other than diktat, than imperialism."

Tensions between Russia and the United States have risen dramatically in the past year, amid sharpening differences over US plans to expand a missile defence shield into eastern Europe, the state of democracy in Russia and concerns over energy supplies.

The Russian leader also recalled the unilateral US withdrawal in 2002 from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) treaty, a landmark US-Soviet pact limiting deployment of missile defences by the Cold War superpower foes and a cornerstone of disarmament.

"We warned them then that we would come out with a response to maintain the strategic balance in the world. Yesterday we conducted a test of a new strategic ballistic missile with multiple warheads, and of a new cruise missile, and will continue to improve our resources."

Putin had warned Wednesday that the US missile defence plan would turn Europe into a "powder keg" and on Thursday he repeated assertions from Moscow that the proposal would ignite a new Cold War-style arms build-up. "We are not the initiators of this new round of the arms race," he said.

On Tuesday, Russia's strategic missile forces announced they had test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the RS-24, capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads in a move lauded as "reinforcing" Russia's ability "to overcome anti-missile defence systems."

The missile was launched in the northwest Arkhangelsk region and hit on target on the Kamchatka peninsula in Russia's far east some 6,000 kilometres (3,700 miles) away, the missile forces said.

Moscow, Friday, AFP