MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin on Friday vowed to further modernize Russian arsenals and said that its military in Syria will “immediately destroy” any target threatening them, a strong warning to Turkey following its shoot-down of a Russian warplane at the Syrian border.
Speaking at a meeting with the top military brass, Putin named “strengthening of the combat potential of strategic nuclear forces and the implementation of space defense programs” as a key priority. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the military has received 35 intercontinental ballistic missiles this year and put forward equally ambitious weapons modernization plans for next year despite Russia’s economic downturn. (READ MORE)
