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Russia-US ties hit new low

Claims Kremlin; Putin urges nuclear weapons boost

AFP, Washington
The United States yesterday played down Russian reports that already tense ties between the old foes have plunged to chilly new lows.
The State Department denied a Kremlin claim that communications are frozen, noting that Secretary of State John Kerry had called his Russian counterpart as recently as Tuesday.
The Pentagon also noted that on the same day Russian spokesman Dmitry Peskov made the claim, its officers had held a video conference with Russian commanders on how to stay out of each other’s way in Syria.
"Practically all levels of dialogue with the United States are frozen," Peskov told Mir TV, according to state news agency RIA Novosti.
“We don't communicate with one another. Or we do so minimally," he added, causing surprise in Washington.
Russia finds itself locked in its worst standoff with the West since the Cold War over its 2014 annexation of Crimea, the conflict in Ukraine and lingering disagreement about the conflict in Syria.
US President Barack Obama's administration on Tuesday reaffirmed its commitment to maintaining sanc-
tions on Moscow over Crimea with new financial restrictions on Russian businessmen and companies. The Russian foreign ministry said it" regretted" the new sanctions.
The White House this month also pointed to direct involvement by Russian President Vladimir Putin in cyber attacks designed to impact the US election.
The upcoming presidency of Donald Trump raises questions over the future of US policy toward Russia given his
apparently softer line on Putin.
Putin himself has reiterated Moscow's readiness to work with the Trump administration once the president-elect takes office in January, stressing the importance of normalizing the countries' relations.
Putin yesterday called for the country to reinforce its military nuclear potential and praised the army's performance in its Syria campaign.
In a speech that recapped military
activities in 2016, Putin said the army's preparedness has "considerably increased" and called for continued improvement that would ensure it can "neutralise any military threat".
"We need to strengthen the military potential of strategic nuclear forces, especially with missile complexes that can reliably penetrate any existing and prospective missile defence systems," the Kremlin strongman said.
Russia began its bombing campaign in Syria in September 2015 in support of President Bashar al-Assad, with its special forces also operating on the ground in the country.
Meanwhile, a top monitor for the conflict in Ukraine warned Thursday that a "massive upsurge in violence" has pushed fighting between Kiev's forces and pro-Russian rebels to levels not seen in months.
The statement by Alexander Hug of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) came a day after the body hailed progress toward a New Year's truce agreement that must still be approved by the insurgents.
Ukrainian forces have lost nearly 10 soldiers since Sunday in the conflict that has simmered in the European Union's backyard since 2014.