Experts assess US's ability to respond to Russia's new missile
It could take the United States 10 years or more to develop a countermeasure against Russia’s new missile, said Michael Elléman, director of the Nonproliferation and Nuclear Policy Program at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
"In the long term, if Russian-American relations continue to deteriorate, the United States can launch programs to respond to the threat from Russia towards Europe or US territory. But that will require a series of technological breakthroughs in the field of missile defense, which I think is unlikely to be achieved in the next 10 years or even longer," he told Sputnik.
However, in the short or medium term, Elleman sees no reason to change Washington's approach to missile defense in Europe.
According to expert Elleman, it is difficult for the United States to deploy missiles in Europe in the current situation.
"I don't think NATO wants to receive such missiles…", - the expert explained.
He also cast doubt on the viability of the INF Treaty and expressed the opinion that now the focus should be on expanding the START-3 Treaty.
According to him, in the event of not extending this Treaty, arms control will decline.
At the same time, he found it difficult to answer the question of whether the US withdrawal from the INF Treaty would lead to an arms race.