Russia suddenly warns of retaliation against the US, including military measures
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that if the US continues to unilaterally withdraw from missile treaties, Russia will take retaliatory measures, including military ones.
Mr Ryabkov said Russia condemned recent US efforts to persuade Russia to make concessions on strategic stability. "But we do not want to let things come to this end," Mr Ryabkov said.
According to Mr. Ryabkov, Russia wants to continue dialogue with the US to resolve issues of mutual concern related to the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.
Deputy Minister Ryabkov said that US National Security Advisor John Bolton visited Russia on October 21 and Russia hopes that the US will have clear explanations regarding the INF issue.
Meanwhile, on the same day, US President Donald Trump, while commenting on the US withdrawal from the Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles (DDSMD) with Russia, declared that Washington would develop weapons.
"We're planning to cancel the deal, we're planning to pull out of the deal. We need to develop weapons," Mr. Trump told reporters.
Mr. Trump declared that the US "complies with the agreement", "but unfortunately Russia does not comply with this document".
"Russia is violating the agreement. They have been doing this for many years. I don't know why President Barack Obama didn't negotiate or withdraw from the agreement," Mr. Trump said.
The Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty was signed on December 8, 1987, during the visit of Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev to Washington. For the first time in history, the parties decided to ban entire classes of missile weapons with ranges from 500 to 1,000 and from 1,000 to 5,500 km, including the R-12 and R-14 missiles that the Soviet Union deployed in Cuba in 1962, which caused the Caribbean crisis.
