Russia to take tit-for-tat measures if US deploys new missiles in Europe: Lavrov
Tehran (KNA) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warns that his country will be left with no choice but to adopt “tit-for-tat” measures if Washington goes ahead with the plan to kill a key Cold War-era arms control treaty and deploys new missiles in Europe.
In an interview with the Rossiya-1 channel published on Monday, Lavrov slammed the European states for voting on December 21 against a Moscow-drafted UN General Assembly resolution aimed at preserving the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).
Russia had drafted that resolution weeks after Washington announced the plan to abandon the INF, which was signed towards the end of Cold War in 1987 by then President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and put a ban on the deployment of ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers (311 to 3,417 miles).
The proposed resolution called on the US and Russia to continue bilateral consultations on adherence to their obligations under the INF and renew dialog on strategic issues for further progress in nuclear disarmament.
Lavrov further said, "We have heard the largest amount of concerns over the US' unilateral exit from this Treaty in Europe," the minister noted. "However, the entire EU has voted against our offer, that is, basically, in favor of the INF Treaty ceasing to exist and in favor of the recurring threat of placement of US missiles in Europe banned under this Treaty."
Source: PressTV