NATO Chief Says Time Running Out To Save INF Treaty, Blames Russia

Sat, 06 Jun 2020

NATO Chief Says Time Running Out To Save INF Treaty, Blames Russia

RFE
18 Jul 2019, 18:45 GMT+10

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says time is running out to save a key Cold War-era arms-control treaty and that he sees no indication Russia intends to meet Western demands on compliance with its terms.

'This is serious. The INF treaty has been a corner stone in arms control for decades and now we see the demise of the treaty,' Stoltenberg told the BBC in an interview published on July 18.

Moscow has repeatedly denied Western allegations that it has deployed ground-launched cruise-missile systems in violation of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.

Earlier this year, the United States gave formal notice that it would withdraw from the pact as of August 2 if Russia did not begin destroying the missiles in question

Stoltenberg said NATO's priority had been to get Moscow to return to compliance but that there were 'no signs whatsoever' that Russia is planning to do so.

'Therefore, we have to be prepared for a world without the INF Treaty and with more Russian missiles.'

Meanwhile, Stoltenberg also praised efforts alliance among members to raise their defense budgets to an agreed target of 2 percent of GDP.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly called on NATO members to contribute more to the organization.

Based on reporting by the BBC

Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Republished with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Dublin News.

More Information

7 ℃

Light Drizzle / Windy in Dublin

Business

Section

Irrational exuberance hits Wall St on stunning employment data

NEW YORK, New York - U.S stocks roared on Friday as employment data showed the U.S, economy could bounce back ...

Irish GDP jumps 4.9% in first quarter this year

DUBLIN, Ireland June 5 (Xinhua) -- Ireland's gross domestic product (GDP) amounted to 87.6 billion euros (about $99 billion) in ...

Shares in Hong Kong in Demand, Asian region moves higher

SYDNEY, NSW, Australia - Stocks in Asia continued higher on Friday, while the U.S. dollar remained in free fall."Central banks ...

New Zealand setting high standards in housing developments

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand - New public housing that will save tenants money in energy bills, and provide warmer, healthier and ...

World food prices fall for fourth consecutive month

ROME, Italy - Global food commodity prices fell for the fourth consecutive month in May as the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic ...

Stocks in Tokyo, Sydney and Hong Kong advance, Shanghai flat

SYDNEY, Australia - Stocks in Asia advanced on Thursday but gains were limited, and not universal.China's Shanghai Composite finished flat.The ...

Europe

Section

Dubai's Special Forces raid home in high profile arrest

DUBAI, UAE - Dubai security officials have arrested a Danish man wanted by Interpol in a sting operation.Amir Faten Mekky, ...

Two Russians expelled from embassy by Czech government

PRAGUE, Czech Republic - Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis says his government has decided to designate two staff members at ...

Real contradition on U.S. call for unity at G7, says France

PARIS, France, June 3 (Xinhua) -- France will maintain its planned tax on digital services at the Organization for Economic ...

Xi calls for "China-France contributions" to winning global COVID-19 fight

Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meets with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron in Osaka, Japan, June 29, 2019. (Xinhua/Yan Yan)BEIJING, ...

Gen.G, MIBR advance in BLAST Spring Showdown - Americas

Gen.G Esports and MIBR remained in contention at the BLAST Premier Spring Showdown's Americas event on Friday by earning 2-1 ...

Renault Vitality close in on Fusion Rocket League's European title

Renault Vitality won both of their semifinal matches Friday in the Fusion Rocket League's European event, building on their lead ...

Movie Review

The Silence (Tystnaden)

Silence