President Vladimir Putin is hopeful the U.S. views Russia as a strong rival possessing a nuclear triad rather than an adversary.
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"Unfortunately, they (the U.S.) still see us as an adversary or an enemy; I hope this is not so de facto," Putin said in a film of the Central Television program of the NTV channel aired on Sunday.
"There is permanent rivalry for economic leadership and resources" in the world, Putin said, adding there was a more pragmatic circumstance, as well.
"The thing is the United States and we are the biggest nuclear powers. No one else but the United States and us has such quantities and quality of nuclear weapons. We are the only countries possessing the triad: nuclear weapons based on land, on the sea and in the air. We are implementing an extensive program to modernize our nuclear armaments," he said.
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