Russia Withdraws from INF Treaty, Blames West for 'Direct Threat' Amid U.S. Submarine Moves and Rising Nuclear Tensions
Russia on Monday declared it no longer considers itself bound by the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. Kremlin has cited growing Western militarization as a direct threat to its national security.
The announcement, made via a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry and reported by RT, marks the formal end of Moscow’s self-imposed moratorium on ground-launched intermediate-range missiles.
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| File Photo: Kremlin |
The ministry specifically cited U.S. missile activity in Asia, pointing to the deployment of a Typhon missile launcher in the Philippines and recent missile firings during the Talisman Sabre military exercises in Australia as “key factors” driving the decision.
The Kremlin described these developments as a “direct threat to Russia’s security.”
The original INF Treaty, signed in 1987 by then-U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, banned land-based missiles with ranges between 500 and 5,500 kilometers.
The pact was regarded as a milestone in Cold War arms control and led to the destruction of over 2,600 missiles by both countries.
However, the treaty collapsed in 2019 after the U.S. withdrew, accusing Russia of repeated violations, an allegation Moscow denied, counter-accusing Washington of secretly developing weapons banned under the pact.
President Vladimir Putin has previously warned that the demise of the INF would “significantly erode the global security framework.”
Monday’s formal abandonment of the treaty by Moscow appears to confirm that grim trajectory.
The announcement comes at a time of rapidly worsening relations between Washington and Moscow, particularly in light of renewed nuclear saber-rattling from both sides.
Just last week, U.S. President Donald Trump said he had ordered two nuclear submarines “into appropriate regions” in response to what he called “highly provocative” threats from former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.
Medvedev had fired back at Trump’s warning of new sanctions, saying: “Each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war. Not between Russia and Ukraine, but with his own country.”
The Kremlin later distanced itself from Medvedev’s remarks, with spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stating, “Russia is very attentive to the topic of nuclear non-proliferation. And we believe that everyone should be very, very cautious with nuclear rhetoric.”
Still, Trump doubled down, telling Newsmax: “When you talk about nuclear, we have to be prepared… and we’re totally prepared.”
His special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to travel to Moscow later this week ahead of an August 9 deadline set by the Trump administration for Russia to take concrete steps toward ending its war in Ukraine or face further penalties.
With Russia now formally unshackled from INF constraints, the risk of regional missile deployments in Europe and Asia rises sharply, even as diplomatic backchannels appear strained and increasingly performative.
Observers warn that this latest move, coupled with nuclear submarine maneuvers, is a signal that the post-Cold War arms control architecture is in full collapse—with few mechanisms left to prevent a new, more unpredictable arms race.