Russia on Tuesday accused the US of “escalating military tensions” by conducting a test of a ground-launched, medium-range cruise missile, just weeks after the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty that banned such missiles officially became defunct.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that “we won’t allow ourselves to be pulled into a costly arms race,” adding that his government would refrain from deploying the kinds of missile systems that had been regulated by the INF Treaty “as long as the US does not deploy them anywhere in the world.”
Due to the collapse of the INF Treat, the nuclear arsenals of the US and Russia our now only bound by one remaining agreement, namely the New START Treaty that is set to expire in 2021. Experts are concerned that New START may not be renewed either, or could break down before it lapses.
Read more: Russia accuses US of stoking military tensions with missile test
