WASHINGTON: The US has decided to formally withdraw from a nuclear treaty with Russia, raising fears of a new arms race.
In 1987, US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), banning missiles with ranges between 500-5,500 km.
Around this time last year, the US and Nato accused Russia of violating the pact by deploying a new type of cruise missile, which Moscow has denied.
The Americans claimed they had evidence that Russia had deployed a number of 9M729 missiles – known to Nato as SSC-8. This accusation was then put to Washington’s Nato allies, which all backed the US’s claim.
(Agencies)
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