Russia formally withdraws from INF nuclear treaty

March 05, 2019

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday officially ended Russia’s participation in the Cold War-era Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), after the United States first announced it would abandon the deal.

Putin “signed a decree regarding the suspension of Russia’s participation in the agreement between the USSR and the US,” the Kremlin said in a statement.

Read more: What is the INF nuclear treaty?

Russia announced last month it was suspending the treaty after the US said it would start a process to withdraw from the deal within six months because of violations by Moscow.

Russia, US accuse each other of violating treaty

Moscow and Washington have accused one another of breaching the INF treaty made between the US and the former Soviet Union in 1987. Russia denies breaking the accord, as does the US.

The accord was negotiated by US President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and ended a superpower buildup of warheads that had frightened Europe.

Read more: INF Treaty: Would US dropout begin an arms race with China?

It banned ground-launched missiles with a range of 500 to 5,500 kilometers (300 to 3,400 miles) and addressed Soviet nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles targeting Western capitals, but put no restrictions on other major military actors such as China.

NATO has said that US allies “fully support” its withdrawal from the pact, insisting that Russia’s 9M729 ground-launched cruise missile systems violate the treaty.

Read more: Europeans aghast as end to INF treaty looms

Some members of the European Union have expressed concern over the consequences of the treaty’s demise and called on Russia to address concerns before the US formally leaves in August.

German reactions to Trump’s threat to ditch nuclear treaty with Russia

Merkel’s government ‘regrets’ Trump’s decision

German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government voiced immediate concern over US President Donald Trump’s threats to pull out of the INF nuclear arms treaty with Russia. Berlin said it “regrets” Washington’s decision, adding that it urged Russia to “dispel the serious doubts about its adherence to the treaty that had arisen as a result of a new type of Russian missile.”

German reactions to Trump’s threat to ditch nuclear treaty with Russia

Foreign Ministry: US move puts Europe at risk

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said that Trump’s move poses “difficult questions for us and for Europe” since the INF treaty is “an important pillar of our European security architecture.”

German reactions to Trump’s threat to ditch nuclear treaty with Russia

Defense minister urges NATO involvement

Maintaining the level of security in Europe was the primary concern of German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen. “Regardless of whether the treaty has to be saved or renegotiated, it is important that all NATO states be included in the discussion,” she told reporters during a trip to China.

German reactions to Trump’s threat to ditch nuclear treaty with Russia

Nobel-winners urge action from Germany

The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), which won a Nobel Peace Prize last year, called on Berlin to intervene in the tug-of-war between the US and Russia. The potential threat to people living in Europe is massive, warned Johannes Mikeska, the head of ICAN’s Germany branch. “That’s why it is urgent for the German government to now mediate between the US and Russia,” he said.

German reactions to Trump’s threat to ditch nuclear treaty with Russia

Greens: Ban all US nukes from Germany

The Greens described Trump’s move as “absolutely fatal.” Annalena Baerbock, the co-leader of the Greens, urged Merkel’s government to take a stand against Washington by getting rid of the US nuclear weapons still stationed in Germany. “If the German government is serious about its appeals to the US government, it must now say: ‘We are ending Germany’s nuclear participation,'” she said.

German reactions to Trump’s threat to ditch nuclear treaty with Russia

FDP leader backs Trump’s argument

Christian Lindner, the leader of the business-friendly Free Democrats (FDP), said although he thinks Trump’s decision is “dangerous,” Washington’s reasoning was sound. “What’s correct is that Putin isn’t adhering to the INF!” Lindner wrote on Twitter. The FDP chief also slammed the Greens’ proposal to remove US weapons from Germany, saying it would leave Germany “defenseless.”

German reactions to Trump’s threat to ditch nuclear treaty with Russia

Germany, Europe ‘extremely worried’

The deputy leader of the FDP, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, told DW that he was deeply concerned about the type of cruise missiles that were prohibited by the treaty. He noted that it “concerns a category of weapons that would reach Europe — not the continental United States.” He added that he believes the treaty can be saved “if all sides share the intention of avoiding a really ruinous arms race.”

Author: Rebecca Staudenmaier