Russia opposest termination of the Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles (INF), but will be forced to respond to US withdrawal, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.
Report informs citing RIA Novosti that Putin was commenting on the nomination of conditions by the United States, voiced by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in the context of withdrawing from the Treaty.
According to him, the American Congress allocated money for the creation of the corresponding missiles even before the announcement of its decision on the INF.
Putin on Wednesday accused the United States of making up excuses for pulling out of the pact, saying that the US first made up its mind to walk out of it and only then “started to look for the reasons why they should do it.”
“Our American partners seems to believe that the situation has changed so much that the US has to have this type of weapons,” he said in televised remarks. “What would be our response? A very simple one: in that case, we will do the same,” Putin said.