03:49 GMT +314 December 2018

A bundle of three Soviet RSD-10 missiles prepared for demolition at the Kapustin Yar launch site. The missiles were destroyed in accordance with the INF Treaty.

Beijing Opposes INF Becoming Multilateral Treaty

© Sputnik / Vladimir Rodionov

10:42 05.12.2018(updated 11:08 05.12.2018) Get short URL

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US President Donald Trump has announced Washington will pull out of the INF Treaty, a 1987 deal with then-USSR stipulating the destruction of cruise or ground-launched ballistic missiles with ranges between 310 and 3,400 miles over alleged violations by Russia. Moscow has consistently said it is in compliance with the agreement.

Beijing opposes the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) becoming a multilateral agreement, as it is a treaty "that was agreed upon by the USSR and the US", Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang said Wednesday.

The development comes on the heels of Donald Trump's October statement suggesting that China should be part of the INF Treaty. Russian Ambassador to the United States Anatoly Antonov later said that the treaty should include not only Beijing but also NATO states, “primarily, France and the United Kingdom".

READ MORE: US Hasn't Yet Notified Russia About Withdrawal From INF — Kremlin

Trump announced his country’s intention to withdraw from the INF Treaty over alleged Russian violations of the agreement. Moscow has refuted the claims pointing out that they are groundless and added that Russia has complaints of its own concerning US compliance with the treaty.

THAAD system

© Photo: US Missile Defense Agency

US Not Interested in Keeping INF Treaty, NATO Ready to Exploit Arms Race - Analysts

The treaty, which stipulates the destruction of all cruise or ground-launched ballistic missiles with ranges between 310 and 3,400 miles was signed in 1987 by then Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and then US President Ronald Reagan.

The deal suggested that the agreement would have an unlimited duration with each side being able to quit it only after providing substantial evidence of the other side’s violations.

Related:: Germany 'Convinced' by US Claims About Russian Violations of INF Treaty – Report

: Democratic Senators Seek to Block Trump Withdrawal From INF Missile Treaty

: US Will Address INF Treaty Withdrawal at NATO Summit – Reports

Tags:

missile, Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), United States, China, Russia

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