US Special Envoy says Russia should remove Missiles ‘violating’ Treaty from Europe

Russia should remove missiles from Europe that violate the conditions of the INF Treaty, according to US Special Envoy for Nuclear Nonproliferation Jeffrey Eberhardt. On being asked to clarify the Biden administration's view on Russia's intention to implement a moratorium on the deployment of medium- and shorter-range missiles in Europe,

Eberhardt told Sputnik, "Russia has already violated the INF by deploying the missiles. Therefore, the solution is for Russia to remove them."

US asks Russia to remove missiles violating INF Treaty

Earlier, the diplomat said the US sought to 'move away from costly weapons races' with prospective rivals and 'establish confidence in the United States as a leader in arms control' at a meeting of the United Nations General Assembly's First Committee on Disarmament and International Security.

Eberhardt was designated as a nuclear nonproliferation special envoy in 2019, the same year that the Trump administration unilaterally terminated the INF Treaty with Russia. After accusing Russia of violating its agreements with one of its missiles, the US withdrew from the agreement, which banned the manufacturing and deployment of ground-based ballistic missiles in the 500-5,500 km range. Russia attempted to salvage the accord by revealing missile capabilities to military attachés and journalists at a military warehouse outside of Moscow. Regardless, Washington cancelled the deal and resumed testing INF-violating missiles almost immediately. On Thursday, Lockheed Martin conducted a test of one of these missiles.

Russia accused US of violating its own obligations under treaty

Prior to the US withdrawal from the INF, Russia accused the US of violating its own obligations under the treaty, citing the illegal deployment of ground-based combat drones, the production of ground-based intermediate-range missiles for 'testing purposes' for America's missile shield, and the deployment of Aegis Ashore missile defence system components in Poland and Romania as examples. Moscow is particularly concerned about the deployment of the Aegis Ashore system, claiming that its launchers could readily be reconfigured to fire nuclear-tipped Tomahawk cruise missiles at Russian locations.

In the late 1980s, after the end of the Cold War, the INF Treaty was signed. After Washington stationed Pershing and cruise missiles in Western Europe, Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev agreed to unbalanced demands by the US side to limit missiles in the 500 to 5,500 km range in an effort to alleviate tensions between the nuclear giants. Nearly 2,700 missiles were destroyed as a result of the treaty's signature, with over two-thirds of them being Soviet.

(With inputs from Sputnik)

(Image: AP)