US expresses concern over Russian arms

THE US yesterday called on Russia to destroy a new cruise missile system which it said was a violation of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, and accused Moscow of destabilising global security.

Disarmament ambassador Robert Wood said the system was capable of carrying conventional and nuclear warheads and represented a “potent and direct threat to Europe and Asia” as it had a range of 500km to 1 500km.

Last week, the US rejected a Russian offer to save the INF treaty that keeps nuclear missiles out of Europe because it could not be properly verified, setting the stage for Washington to withdraw from the pact next month.

“Unfortunately, the US increasingly finds that Russia cannot be trusted to comply with its arms control obligations and that its coercive and malign actions around the globe have increased tensions,” Wood told the UN-sponsored Conference on Disarmament.

There was no immediate response from the Russian delegation at the 65-member state Geneva forum.

Russia has flight-tested the missile, known as the SSC-8/9M729, and taken no concrete steps to return to compliance with the INF pact, Wood said.

“Russia must verifiably destroy all SSC-8 missiles, launchers and associated equipment in order to come back into compliance with the INF Treaty,” he said, reiterating the plan of Donald Trump’s administration to withdraw from the 1987 pact next month.