Trump pulling out of missile treaty is Putin world at risk

Donald Trump’s decision to pull out of the landmark agreement that made the world a safer place should worry everyone.

The Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty signed in 1987 by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev placed a ban on an entire class of weapons.

As the two superpowers worked to design the ultimate killing machines, the leaders had the sense to outlaw a new generation of intermediate and short-range weapons with a range of between 300 and 3,400 miles.

But it seems sense is the last thing Trump and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin have and, as a result, they have now placed the rest of the world in danger.

It is not the first time the US leader has torn up an international treaty.

So far he has pulled America out of deals on climate change, trade and Iran, while also toying with a withdrawal from Nato.

But his decision to pull out from the INFT should sound the alarm bells of even his most ardent supporters.

It provides the green light for Putin to now start building those missiles which could threaten any capital in Europe as well as all Nato allies.

In reply to Trump’s decision, Putin responded by saying Russia will also abandon the centrepiece nuclear arms treaty, adding Moscow will only deploy intermediate-range nuclear missiles if Washington does so.

So welcome to the new dawn of nuclear instability in which agreements that have kept the most dangerous weapons on the planet at bay are disappearing, overtaken by the ever-increasing threat of new, quickly advancing technologies.

The likelihood of a nuclear accident or blunder seems to be growing by the day as major nuclear powers invest heavily in their arsenals.

Pakistan has the fastest-growing armoury on the planet. China continues to modernise its nuclear forces, while the US plan to spend more than €1.1trillion over the next 30 years on weapons that increase the targeting and kill capability of strategic nuclear weapons.

What makes the issue all the more dire is there are few channels of communication between adversaries, particularly America and Russia, which maintain more than 90% of the world’s nuclear weapons.

The two sides have a shared stake in guarding the future of humanity but such discussion is made harder as Trump struggles with accusations of undisclosed ties to Moscow.

All players need to act like sensible grown-ups when it comes to nuclear security.

The world has entered a dangerous new era of instability.

Trump treats the Presidency much like he did his business – bullying others until he gets his way.

But unlike the thousands of small businesses he’s ripped off over the years, he’s finding to the world’s cost, running a country is not like running a golf club.

It is imperative the US Congress does not allow the Trump administration to plunge the world into a 21st century nuclear arms race.

Such a dangerous policy not only undermines global security but more importantly plays directly into Putin’s hands while placing peace in Europe at risk.

The world has entered a dangerous new era of instability