Russia will exit the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) with the United States in six months as a part of the symmetric response of what Washington has pulled itself out from, the Interfax news agency reported on Wednesday citing Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.
According to Reuters news reports, at the weekend, the Russian president, Vladimir Putin has said Moscow had suspended from the cold war-era pact after Washington declared that it would fully withdraw from the pact, which imposed bans on both the countries from stationing short- and intermediate-range land-based nuclear missiles in Europe, in coming six months unless Russia does not end what it said are the violations of the 1987 treaty.
Russia and the US accused each other of violating the pact with Putin saying that Russia had acted in a fact to retaliate the US announcement withdrawing from the treaty. Though, Russia denied violating the pact.
Russia has said on Tuesday that Moscow will plan to develop two new missile systems before 2021 in order to respond to the United States’ planned termination from a landmark nuclear arms control pact, the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.
China has opposed the United States withdrawal from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty deal with Russia and further urged both the two countries – the US and Russia – to “resolve differences through constructive dialogue”.