NATO says alliance members "concerned" about Russia's possible INF violation

NATO countries express concerns about an alleged violation by Russia of the Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty), NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference in Brussels on Wednesday.

"The problem is that no treaty can be effective, can work if it’s only respected by one part and therefore NATO allies have expressed concerns about the Russian behavior about the development of the new Russian missile," Stoltenberg said. "And they also stated clearly, all allies that the most plausible explanation is that Russia is in violation of the treaty," the NATO chief said.

"All allies of course agree with United States that United States is in full compliance with the treaty," he went on to say. Stoltenberg declined to answer the question how the US withdrawal from the INF would affect security of the European countries.

On October 20, US President Donald Trump said that his country would quit the treaty that eliminated and outlawed intermediate and shorter range missiles, because Russia had allegedly violated it. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov described the decision as a dangerous move. Berlin and Beijing criticized Washington, too. In the meantime, London voiced support for the United States and NATO blamed the responsibility for Trump’s decision on Russia which, according to the alliance’s claims was in breach of the treaty.

The INF Treaty was concluded on December 8, 1987 and took effect on June 1, 1988. It outlawed deployed and non-deployed ground-based missiles of intermediate range (1,000 to 5,500 kilometers) and shorter range (500 kilometers to 1,000 kilometers). In recent years Washington repeatedly accused Moscow of violating that treaty. Moscow categorically dismissed these charges and put forward its own counter-arguments the United States itself was responsible for being in breach of the INF treaty terms.