RUSSIA: President Vladimir Putin has denied US claims that Moscow intends to deploy nuclear weapons in space, saying that his country has only developed space capabilities similar to those of the US.

The White House alleged last week that Russia had obtained a “troubling” anti-satellite weapon capability, although such a weapon is not operational yet.

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said it would violate the international Outer Space Treaty, but he declined to comment on whether the weapon is nuclear-capable.