Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Russia threatens retaliation if US deploys missile posts in Asia following withdrawal from Cold War treaty

America promises missiles in Asia region only one day after withdrawing from nuclear agreement

Monday 05 August 2019 19:21 BST
Comments
President Trump says he has no problem with North Korea testing short range missiles

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Russia said on Monday it would take measures to defend itself if the United States stationed missiles in Asia following the collapse of a landmark arms control treaty, and that it expected Japan to deploy a new US missile launch system.

US defence secretary Mark Esper said on Saturday that he was in favour of placing ground-launched, intermediate-range missiles in Asia relatively soon.

The US official made the comment a day after Washington withdrew from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty, a Cold War-era pact signed in 1987 that banned land-based missiles with a range of between 310 and 3,400 miles (500-5,500 km).

Asked about the possible American missile deployment, Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, said the Kremlin did not plan to get sucked into an arms race with Washington, but that it would respond defensively to any threats.

“If the deployment of new US systems begins specifically in Asia then the corresponding steps to balance these actions will be taken by us in the direction of parrying these threats,” Mr Ryabkov told a news conference.

He said Moscow expected Tokyo to soon station the US MK-41 missile-launching system in Japan.

“The universal MK-41 launch system that will appear, it seems, in Japan can also be adapted to be used to launch medium-range cruise missiles ... So these new systems when they appear in Japan will without doubt also be taken into account during our corresponding planning,” he said.

Reuters

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in