German Foreign Minister Calls For Expansion Of INF Treaty Scope, Inclusion Of Other States

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Friday that the scope of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty should be expanded by means of a new document that would include other countries, such as China, in the agreement

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 18th January, 2019) German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Friday that the scope of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty should be expanded by means of a new document that would include other countries, such as China, in the agreement.

"Today, there are too many new [weapons] systems, such as autonomous weapons systems and weapons in cyberspace, so that a treaty is necessary that would go beyond the scope of INF Treaty regulations and would regulate new technological capabilities," Maas said at a press conference after a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Maas noted that besides Russia and the United States, other states developing weapons systems, such as China, should be subject "to a new form of international arms control and new architecture in this area."