The United States has formally withdrawn from a landmark nuclear missile pact with Russia after determining that Moscow was in violation of the treaty, something the Kremlin has repeatedly denied. Washington signalled it would pull out of the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty in February unless Moscow stuck to the accord.
Russia called the move a ploy to exit a pact the US wanted to leave anyway in order to develop new missiles.
The United Nations (UN) Secretary General Antonio Guterres says that the INF helped stabilise Europe and end the Cold War.
“I am concerned about rising tensions between nuclear-armed states. The Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty, the INF, is a landmark agreement that helped stabilise Europe and end the Cold War. When it expires tomorrow, the world will lose an invaluable brake on nuclear war. This will likely heighten, not reduce, the threat posed by ballistic missiles. Regardless of what transpires, the parties should avoid destabilising developments and urgently seek agreement on a new common path for international arms control.”
Guterres also called on the two nuclear-armed states to extend the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New Start, which entered into force in 2011 but is expected to expire in 2021.
“I strongly encourage the United States and the Russian Federation to extend the so-called ‘New Start’ agreement to provide stability and the time to negotiate future arms control measures. I also call on all State Parties to work together at the 2020 Review of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons to ensure the NPT remains able to fulfil its fundamental goals, preventing nuclear war and facilitating the elimination of nuclear weapons.”
