In fact, to be exact, the US began to undermine the INF treaty years ago and has finally destroyed it.

This is not the first time Washington has acted this way. One can see a vivid trend that the US is undertaking consecutive steps to get rid of or erode the international arms control agreements that do not correspond to its interests in some way.

The collapse of the INF treaty is very much similar to the US’ withdrawal from the ABM treaty in 2002. It is also worth noting the US’ rejection to work out a legally binding verification protocol for the convention on the prohibition of biological weapons or reluctance to fully destroy its chemical weapons stockpiles in accordance with obligations taken under the convention on the prohibition of chemical weapons.

This list of claims is not full and can be expanded.

Needless to say that by denouncing the INF treaty, Washington is dismantling the existing nuclear missile control system in general. Moreover, this dangerous trend is accompanied by US officials’ statements on their readiness to build up nuclear armaments. Such behavior is fraught with destructive consequences for the entire architecture of global security and strategic stability.

The uncertainty about the future of the last Russian-US restricting and verifying mechanism in the nuclear arms sphere, the New START that expires in February 2021, also fits this trend.

The US never took actions necessary to address its severe violations of the INF treaty. Among them, first, is the deployment of Mk 41 launchers that have the capability to fire intermediate-range cruise missiles, which is prohibited by the treaty. Second, the launch of the target missiles with properties equivalent to those of ballistic intermediate-range missiles with a view to testing the US missile defense system. Third, the use of missile drones that fully meet the definition of a “land-based cruise missile”.

Instead of correcting these violations, Washington decided, as the Russian saying goes, “to shift the blame from the sick head to the healthy one”, to launch an irresponsible propaganda campaign based on deliberately misleading information on what was presented as violations of the INF treaty by Russia.

In other words, an attempt was made to distort everything and present the matter as if the US is withdrawing from the treaty due to Russia’s behavior.

The reality is that the US has presented no evidence of Russia violating the INF treaty over the years of discussing all the treaty-related problems. Nevertheless, the US gave an ultimatum that it would only return to the treaty if Russia completely and verifiably destroyed all the 9M729 missiles allegedly prohibited by the treaty, as well as all the launchers and associated equipment, and agreed to future inspections.

It is clear that this position is unacceptable for us because the 9M729 land-based cruise missile, the existence of which we have never hidden, was not designed or tested for the prohibited range. Russia has fully complied with the INF treaty since the day it came into effect. We have refuted all the US’ allegations, which are completely groundless.

It should be very clear that all the responsibility for what has happened with the INF treaty rests with the US.

Instead of engaging in a meaningful discussion on international security matters, the US buried the INF treaty by launching and completing the procedure for its unilateral withdrawal, while Russia consistently protected the treaty until the very end. In fact, it is completely incorrect to say that Russia has also withdrawn from the treaty and shares the responsibility, as some foreign officials and several media do.

Russia did everything possible to save the INF treaty. In recent years, as soon as the US began moving toward the withdrawal from the treaty, we tried many times to start a constructive conversation with the US. We proposed a number of initiatives that would have made it possible to resolve the claims from both sides and save the INF treaty. Russia was transparent beyond the treaty’s provisions.

However, all our efforts were ignored or turned down by Washington. Unfortunately, the US’ true goal was not to keep the INF treaty but to get rid of the bans and restrictions on the buildup of US missile potential.

With the INF treaty no longer in force and in the face of new threats from the US, we will take comprehensive measures to ensure our own security. Having said that I have to stress that Russia has already introduced a moratorium. As president of Russia Vladimir Putin said on Feb. 2, Russia will not deploy land-based intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles in Europe or other regions unless the US places armaments of the same class there.

We call on the US to renounce deploying missiles of these classes. We call for following Russia’s example by taking the necessary steps to ensure global stability and predictability. Otherwise, all the responsibility for escalating tensions across the world will rest with Washington.

Russia remains open to equitable and constructive dialogue with the US for restoring trust and strengthening international security. We hope that the US adopts a responsible approach to this matter.

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The writer is the Russian ambassador to Indonesia.

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