NATO threatens coordinated response to Russia's INF decision
(Baonghean.vn) - The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) will launch a coordinated response if Russia does not return to compliance with the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty by August 2. This is the statement of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
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| NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Photo: Getty |
“The question is what will we do if they don’t come back into compliance,” Stoltenberg said at the Aspen Security Forum. “We have decided that we will respond to this. It will be a measured and coordinated response.”
Mr. Stoltenberg noted that NATO has a number of response options, including strengthening missile defense and conventional armed forces.
Earlier, the NATO Secretary General had assigned Russia the responsibility to maintain the INF Treaty, calling on Moscow to use the “last chance” to save the treaty. Similar recommendations were also made by the European Union (EU).
Responding to Brussels' appeal, the Russian Foreign Ministry noted that Brussels was acting under pressure from Washington and that the EU's appeals were being sent to the wrong address.
The INF Treaty was an agreement between the Soviet Union and the United States, signed by then-President Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan on December 8, 1987, during the US-Soviet Union Summit in Washington.
The treaty entered into force on June 1, 1988. Earlier this year, the United States announced its unilateral withdrawal from the INF Treaty, accusing Russia of violating the treaty. President Vladimir Putin noted that Russia should not and will not be drawn into a costly arms race with Moscow.
In addition, Mr. Putin added that all of Russia's proposals on disarmament "remain on the table and the door is open", but from now on will not initiate any negotiations on this issue. Earlier in July, Mr. Putin signed a law on suspending the INF.
