by DMITRY SIDOROV
MOSCOW – RUSSIA has confirmed it will no longer abide by any restrictions on deploying ground-based intermediate-range missiles, following the collapse of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with the United States.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow now reserves the right to place such missiles “where and when deemed necessary,” citing growing threats from the West.
“We no longer have any limitations in this regard,” Peskov told reporters, describing missile deployment as a matter of national defense that is “sensitive and secretive.”
The INF Treaty, signed by the US and USSR, banned land-based missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers.
It fell apart in 2019 when the US, under President Donald Trump, withdrew from the pact, accusing Russia of violations — claims Moscow has denied.
Russia had maintained a self-imposed moratorium on missile deployment, urging NATO to do the same.
However, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that recent US actions, including plans to deploy long-range weapons in Germany by 2026 and the 2024 deployment of a Typhoon missile launcher in the Philippines, now pose a “direct threat.”
Moscow has therefore lifted its moratorium, signaling a new phase in post-INF arms strategy amid escalating global tensions.
– CAJ News
