Donald Trump took US allies by surprise when he announced his intention to leave the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty in October. The agreement led to the destruction of thousands of US and Soviet weapons, and has kept nuclear missiles out of Europe for three decades. Thompson noted that the US had been demanding Russian transparency over the missile for more than five years. European diplomats mount last-ditch effort to stop US scrapping INF treaty Read moreThe Obama administration had complained to Russia about its new missile but had not threatened to leave the treaty. The Trump administration was criticised by former officials and arms control advocates for not pursuing the Russian offer of inspections.

Source: The Guardian January 16, 2019 23:30 UTC