Russia Slams EU For Lopsided Stance On INF Nuclear Treaty

Russia's Foreign Ministry on Monday slammed the EU foreign policy chief for siding with Washington in piling blame for the unraveling of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty on Moscow

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th July, 2019) Russia's Foreign Ministry on Monday slammed the EU foreign policy chief for siding with Washington in piling blame for the unraveling of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty on Moscow.

Federica Mogherini called on Russia on Sunday to take immediate actions to ensure full and verifiable compliance with the 1987 deal that put limits on nuclear weapons stockpiled by the Cold War rivals.

"We regret EU's lopsided approach to the cause of the INF crisis. In particular, it did not mention concerns that Russia had expressed for years over US compliance. The US has caused the deal to fall apart but Russia is urged to keep it in place," the ministry said.

It questioned the timing of Mogherini's statement, three weeks before the United States quits the deal unilaterally.

The ministry said this begged the question whether Brussels realized the extent of repercussions that the end of the INF would have for the European security.

"The statement was clearly for show and a propaganda stunt. The EU continues to toe the US line by rejecting Russia's realistic proposals on how to deal with mutual accusations [of INF violations] by pursuing mutual transparency," it added.

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on July 3, formally suspending commitments under the deal, which bans short- and medium-range missiles. This was in response to the United States halting its participation in the nuclear pact in February.