Putin: US Raising Risk of Nuclear War by Leaving INF

Local Editor

Russian President Vladimir Putin said the US is making nuclear war more likely by threatening to leave an arms control treaty with Moscow and refusing to discuss the future of another such bilateral agreement.

Putin’s Thursday remarks came as he addressed his annual news conference, throwing the ball in Washington’s court to avert the warfare.

"It's very hard to imagine how the situation will develop if the US quits the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty INF,” Putin said.

The 1987 pact, which Washington has threatened to ditch, bans the two sides from stationing short- and intermediate-range missiles in Europe. The treaty did not cover sea-launched missiles.

“If these missiles appear in Europe, what should we do? Of course, we'll have to ensure our own security," Putin added.

Separately, Putin said the issue of US-led Western sanctions targeting the country was nothing new as Moscow had always faced some bans of the sort.

The measures, he said, had been developed in response to an increase in Russia’s power, and had, in a sense, proven to Moscow’s benefit by making its economy resilient and changing its mindset in many aspects.

The US and its European allies have imposed multiple rounds of punitive measures against Russia over what they call Moscow’s interference in Ukraine’s affairs and allegations of the Kremlin’s “malign activities” around the world.

Washington also accuses Moscow of interfering in the 2016 US presidential election, which Russia roundly rejects.

Putin also reacted to a recent announcement by the US that it was to pull its troops out of Syria.

"I don't know what this is about. The US has had a presence in Afghanistan for 17 years, lets say? And almost every year it says that it is withdrawing troops from there. But they are still present there," he said.

Putin added, though, "We don't see any indication of US withdrawing troops as of yet but I accept that it may be happening."

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team