How many nuclear weapons does Russia have and how does this compare to America?

RUSSIA, which has the world's largest nuclear stockpile, was one of the first countries to develop nuclear weapons in 1949.

During the Cold War, this large nuclear arsenal was used as a way to compete with the United States on the world stage, leading to an arms race.

In recent years, Russia has expressed a willingness to use these weapons of mass destruction amid its ongoing war against Ukraine.

How many nuclear weapons does Russia have?

Russia's President Putin has increasingly used the threat of a nuclear war (Image: Getty Images) Russia is the world's largest nuclear power, boasting a stockpile of around 5500 warheads.

This places it ahead of the United States, which has an arsenal of around 3700.

How many nuclear weapons does the UK have?

The United Kingdom was the third nation to develop nuclear weapons, obtaining the technology in 1952.

At the moment, the UK has 225 nuclear warheads, a massive decrease from the country's stockpile peak of 520 in the 1970s.

Which countries around the world have nuclear weapons?

There are nine nuclear powers in the world (Image: Getty Images) These are all the countries around the world that possess nuclear weapons in order of when they obtained them.

• The United States of America (USA) - 1945
• Russian Federation (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics - USSR) - 1949
• United Kingdom - 1952
• France - 1960
• People's Republic of China - 1964

---

Recommended Reading: 

Which countries around the globe have nuclear weapons? All you need to know

How many nuclear weapons does the United States of America possess? 

How many nuclear weapons does the UK have? All you need to know

---

• India - 1974
• Pakistan - 1998
• Israel - between 1960 and 1979 (first successful test unknown)
• North Korea - 2006

There are a total of nine internationally recognised nuclear powers around the globe.