US needs to ‘think twice’ on treaty pullout

▶ White House advisor Bolton could meet with Putin on Tuesday

China on Monday called on the US to think twice about its decision to ditch a Cold War-era nuclear weapons treaty with Russia.

US President Donald Trump announced over the weekend his plan to withdraw from the 1987 IntermediateRange Nuclear Forces Treaty, a treaty which banned ground-launched nuclear missiles with ranges from 500 to 5,500 kilometers.

“Unilateral withdrawal will create a multitude of negative effects,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a regular news briefing on Monday.

The treaty has played an important role in advancing the disarmament process and maintaining a strategic balance and global stability, Hua noted.

Trump said the Russians have been violating it “for many years” and that China, not a signatory, remained free to develop such weapons.

“It needs to be emphasized that it is completely wrong to bring up China when talking about withdrawal from the treaty,” Hua said.

Hua said China hopes relevant parties will “think twice about the issue of withdrawing,” in a reference to the US.

Washington has complained for nearly two years that a ground-launched missile system deployed by Russia breaches the treaty.

White House National Security Advisor John Bolton began two days of meetings with senior Russian officials on Monday.

On Tuesday, he may speak with President Vladimir Putin about the treaty, according to Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who said the Russian leader was looking for “clarifications” about US intentions.

Peskov told journalists on Monday that ditching the treaty “will make the world more dangerous” and rejected US claims that Moscow has violated the pact, instead accusing Washington of doing so.

“It is the US that is eroding the foundations and main elements of this pact with its missile defense capabilities and drones,” he said.

The row comes ahead of what is expected to be a second summit between Trump and Putin this year.

US-Russia ties are under deep strain over accusations Moscow meddled in the 2016 US presidential election.

The two countries are also at odds over Russian support for the Syrian government in the country’s civil war, and the conflict in Ukraine.

The European Commission also urged the US and Russia to pursue talks to preserve the nuclear weapons treaty on Monday.

The Commission, the 28-nation EU executive arm, stressed the treaty as a cornerstone of European defense for the last three decades.

The landmark treaty was signed by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev and led to nearly 2,700 short- and medium-range missiles being eliminated.

It put an end to a mini-arms race in the 1980s triggered by the Soviet Union’s deployment of SS-20 nuclear missiles targeting Western European capitals.