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A2 UP FRONT
Monday 22 october 2018
Trump says U.S. will pull out of intermediate range nuke pact
By ZEKE MILLER and MI- veloping them unless Rus- ing nuclear weapons in re-
CHAEL BALSAMO sia and China agree not sponse to an attack involv-
ELKO, Nevada (AP) — Presi- to possess or develop the ing nuclear or other weap-
dent Donald Trump said weapons, Trump said. Chi- ons of mass destruction, or
Saturday he will exit a land- na is not currently party to in response to a non-nucle-
mark arms control agree- the pact. ar assault that endangered
ment the United States "We'll have to develop the survival of the Russian
signed with the former So- those weapons, unless Rus- nation.
viet Union, saying that Rus- sia comes to us and China "We are slowly slipping back
sia is violating the pact and comes to us and they all to the situation of cold war
it's preventing the U.S. from come to us and say let's as it was at the end of the
developing new weapons. really get smart and let's Soviet Union, with quite sim-
The 1987 pact, which helps none of us develop those ilar consequences, but now
protect the security of the weapons, but if Russia's do- it could be worse because
U.S. and its allies in Europe ing it and if China's doing it, (Russian President Vladimir)
and the Far East, prohib- and we're adhering to the Putin belongs to a genera-
its the United States and President Donald Trump speaks to media before boarding Air agreement, that's unac- tion that had no war under
Russia from possessing, Force One at Elko Regional Airport, Saturday, Oct. 20, 2018, in ceptable," he said. its belt," said Dmitry Oresh-
producing or test-flying a Elko, Nev., after a campaign rally. National Security Adviser kin, an independent Rus-
ground-launched cruise Associated Press John Bolton was headed sian political analyst. "These
missile with a range of 300 Saturday to Russia, Azer- people aren't as much
to 3,400 miles. rally in Elko, Nevada. "And lowed to." baijan, Armenia and Geor- fearful of a war as peo-
"Russia has violated the we're not going to let them The agreement has con- gia. His first stop is Moscow, ple of Brezhnev's epoch.
agreement. They have violate a nuclear agree- strained the U.S. from de- where he'll meet with Rus- They think if they threaten
been violating it for many ment and go out and do veloping new weapons, sian leaders, including For- the West properly, it gets
years," Trump said after a weapons and we're not al- but America will begin de- eign Minister Sergei Lavrov scared."
and Security Council Sec- Trump's decision could be
retary Nikolai Patrushev. His controversial with Europe-
visit comes at a time when an allies and others who
Moscow-Washington rela- see value in the treaty,
tions also remain frosty over said Steven Pifer, a former
the Ukrainian crisis, the war U.S. ambassador to Ukraine
in Syria and allegations of and now a senior fellow
Russian meddling in the at the Brookings Institution
2016 presidential race and who focuses on nuclear
upcoming U.S. midterm arms control.
elections. "Once the United States
There was no immediate withdraws from the treaty,
comment from the Kremlin there is no reason for Russia
or the Russian Foreign Min- to even pretend it is observ-
istry on Trump's announce- ing the limits," he wrote in a
ment. post on the organization's
Trump didn't provide de- website. "Moscow will be
tails about violations, but in free to deploy the 9M729
2017, White House national cruise missile, and an in-
security officials said Russia termediate-range ballistic
had deployed a cruise mis- missile if it wants, without
sile in violation of the treaty. any restraint."
Earlier, the Obama admin- U.S. officials have previ-
istration accused the Rus- ously alleged that Russia
sians of violating the pact violated the treaty by de-
by developing and testing liberately deploying a land-
a prohibited cruise missile. based cruise missile in order
Russia has repeatedly de- to pose a threat to NATO.
nied that it has violated the Russia has claimed that U.S.
treaty and has accused missile defenses violate the
the United States of not be- pact.
ing in compliance. In the past, the Obama ad-
Defense Secretary James ministration worked to con-
Mattis has previously sug- vince Moscow to respect
gested that a Trump ad- the INF treaty but made
ministration proposal to little progress.
add a sea-launched cruise "If they get smart and if oth-
missile to America's nuclear ers get smart and they say
arsenal could provide the let's not develop these hor-
U.S. with leverage to try to rible nuclear weapons, I
convince Russia to come would be extremely happy
back in line on the arms with that, but as long as
treaty. somebody's violating the
Russia's Foreign Ministry said agreement, we're not go-
in February that the coun- ing to be the only ones to
try would only consider us- adhere to it," Trump said.q
