Donald Trump has been attacking the intelligence community that he chose and put in place. Yet, he has been dancing to any song that the Russian president and former KGB officer Vladimir Putin sings. Curiously though, the U.S. is leaving a long-term nuclear pact with Russia.
The U.S. claimed that the Russians have been violating the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF). Reuters wrote that the Russian missile Novator 9M729 (SSC-8 in NATO terminology) exists in violation of the agreement, which forbids either country from:
‘…placing short- and intermediate-range, land-based missiles in Europe.’
U.S. Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Andrea Thompson has been in talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. Moscow has a 60-day deadline to comply with the treaty. The two met in Beijing to resolve their differences.
Russia claimed that the missile’s range excludes it from the treaty, that the U.S. simply wanted to develop its own new missiles. Moscow might be right.
Thompson said the U.S. military could begin research and implementation of its longer-range missiles right away. Those missiles also might be deployed to Europe.
The senior U.S. arms control official spoke to Reuters about the treaty obligation:
‘We’ll be able to do that (suspend our treaty obligations) on Feb. 2. We’ll have an announcement made, follow all the steps that need to be taken on the treaty to suspend our obligations with the intent to withdraw.’
Representing one of the two great nuclear powers, she told Reuters that it takes about six months to complete the withdrawal process. That is after the formal withdrawal is announced. However, the administration would continue to discuss the issue:
‘We are then also able to conduct the R&D and work on the systems we haven’t been able to use because we’ve been in compliance with the treaty. Come February 2, this weekend, if DoD (the U.S. Department of Defense) chooses to do that, they’ll be able to do that.’
The U.S. wanted Moscow to destroy its new missile, but the Russians refused.
Ryabkov indicated that the Russians would still work on an agreement. Moscow also said that the U.S. government had been unhappy about America’s missiles and had “a destructive position:”
‘The United States imposed a 60-day period during which we had to fulfill their ultimatum.’
After Ryabkov left the talks with Thompson, the Sputnik news agency indicated that he said:
‘I conclude that the United States was not expecting any decision and all this was a game made to cover their domestic decision to withdraw from the INF Treaty.’
Featured image is a screenshot via YouTube.
