"A step away from the arms race because of US ambitions": and. about. Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN criticized the tests of the American rocket

US geopolitical ambitions provoke a new arms race. This was stated by and. about. Russia's Permanent Representative to the UN Dmitry Polyansky at a meeting of the UN Security Council. He noted that Washington deliberately destroyed the INF Treaty, and its withdrawal from the treaty “knocked out another pillar in the architecture of arms control.” The Russian diplomat also pointed out that on August 18 - just over two weeks after the official termination of the INF Treaty - the United States tested a medium-range missile that could not be developed in such a short time. The representative of Washington rejected the claims of the Russian side, again unfoundedly accusing Moscow of violating the agreement.

US geopolitical ambitions lead to an uncontrolled arms race. This was announced at an extraordinary meeting of the UN Security Council and. about. Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the organization Dmitry Polyansky.

“We all, due to the geopolitical ambitions of the United States, are one step away from an uncontrolled and unregulated arms race ... We, for example, are very worried about this prospect. But it seems that there are no American colleagues, ”Polyansky said.

Therefore, he noted, the United States began to openly test a medium-range missile that fell within the limitations of the INF Treaty, which, apparently, was developed long before the withdrawal from the treaty.

“Otherwise, how can, as the Pentagon chief Mark Esper did, announce the possibility of deploying ground-based short and medium-range missiles within a few months? For such a short time, such weapons are not being created, ”the diplomat said.

He noted that threats and statements by US officials since the withdrawal from the agreement indicate that "Washington ... has consistently and deliberately violated the INF Treaty for a long time, and the denunciation by the Americans of the treaty" knocked out another pillar in the architecture of arms control "" .

In particular, Polyansky noted the American Mk41 launchers, which can be converted to launch Tomahawk-type missiles.

“When the first of them was deployed in Romania, it became obvious that they could easily be converted to launch Tomahawk-type missiles, which is prohibited by the INF Treaty. We immediately noticed this. Now it’s quite obvious that we were right, ”said and. about. Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN.

With the support of the Allies

Claims of the Russian diplomat rejected and. about. US Ambassador to the UN Jonathan Cohen. He emphasized that the missile test "is neither provocative nor destabilizing."

“This is a response aimed at providing opportunities to protect our national interests in the world after the INF Treaty, which Russia created,” said Cohen.

And she created this world, according to the diplomat, by developing the 9M729 missile, which supposedly violates the provisions of the agreement. At the same time, Moscow has repeatedly noted that the radius of this missile is less than 500 km. To convince its Western partners of this, the Russian Defense Ministry held an open briefing, which revealed the characteristics of the rocket. However, the United States and its allies ignored the briefing.

Moreover, Cohen noted, now the United States will continue to test missiles previously banned by the INF Treaty. This will be done in response to "threats" from the Russian Federation and China, he added.

“We will not sit back and take the necessary measures to ensure our safety and the security of our allies. This involves testing and developing systems to counter the threats that we face, ”he explained. about. Permanent Representative of the United States.

The position of Washington was actively supported by representatives of Germany, Great Britain and France. In particular, the Deputy Permanent Representative of Great Britain to the UN, Jonathan Allen, said that London fully supports Washington’s decision to withdraw from the INF Treaty and trusts its statement on the timing of the development of the rocket tested in August.

“We accepted the explanation that the United States presented regarding the timing of the development of the recently tested ground-based cruise missile. We do not believe that the United States at least once did not comply with the INF Treaty, ”Allen said.

A similar position of the allies of Washington at a meeting of the Security Council and. about. Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN called "predictably boring."

“As we expected, the United States and countries that gnaw them, contrary to facts and common sense, are blaming them for good, accusing Russia of all mortal sins,” Dmitry Polyansky concluded in his reply after the main speech.

Hope for US restraint

On behalf of China’s permanent representative to the UN, Zhang Jun called on the United States to return to negotiations with Russia on the further reduction of armaments. The representative of China noted that the withdrawal of the United States from the INF Treaty would adversely affect security in Europe and Asia.

“The US’s unilateral withdrawal from the treaty led to the termination of the treaty, which will have a significant negative effect on the global strategic balance and stability, regional security in Europe and Asia, as well as on the international arms control regime,” said Zhang Jun.

He also called on the United States to abandon the deployment of new medium and shorter-range ground-based missiles in Asia.

In the world after the INF Treaty

Earlier, on August 18, the United States tested a non-nuclear ground-based cruise missile, which was banned by the Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate and Shorter-Range Missiles. Start was made on the island of San Nicholas, California. As noted at the Pentagon, the missile "left the ground mobile launcher and accurately hit the target after more than 500 kilometers of flight."

At the same time, the department later emphasized that the development of such a missile was allegedly launched in February 2019, that is, immediately after Washington suspended its participation in the INF Treaty.

“After the United States suspended its obligations under the INF Treaty in February 2019, the Department of Defense began conceptual designing ground-based cruise missile and ballistic missile systems,” Pentagon spokesman Colonel Robert Carver quoted RIA Novosti as saying.

According to Carver, the development is allegedly in the early stages of testing, and "it will be years before any operating system is ready for deployment."

At the same time, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed doubt about the veracity of US statements. So, in his opinion, the tests were carried out in too short a time.

“The Americans tested this missile too quickly after the announcement of withdrawal from the treaty ... In this regard, we have every reason to believe that work on this missile, on its landing - this is a sea missile - began long before (it began. - RT ) the search for reasons to withdraw from the contract, ”the Russian leader emphasized.

“Not an invitation to dialogue”

In turn, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov recalled a conversation with US Presidential Assistant for National Security John Bolton, in which the latter announced Washington’s intention to withdraw from the INF Treaty. According to Lavrov, the conversation took place in October last year during Bolton’s visit to the Russian Federation.

“He told us ... that Trump’s statement about the need to withdraw from this treaty is not an invitation to dialogue, this is the final decision made. Apparently, even then, maybe even earlier, they began to prepare the tests that took place, ”the Foreign Minister stressed.

On August 2, the INF Treaty was officially discontinued at the initiative of the United States.

In this regard, Putin said that now Russia will work on the development of medium and shorter range systems. At the same time, he pointed out that Russia would not deploy such weapons until the United States did.

Looking for an excuse

However, the United States does not abandon attempts to find a convenient excuse for shifting the blame for the termination of the INF Treaty on Russia. In particular, the State Department published a report stating that Moscow allegedly wanted to withdraw from the treaty back in 2004.

"According to the United States, the decision of Russia to violate the INF Treaty arose on the basis of many years of disappointment that it was forbidden to own medium-range ground-based missiles, even though the alleged threats within these ranges increased around its borders," RIA Novosti reports. quote from the report.

US Department of State Building in Washington
Reuters

It also follows from the document that the first bell was allegedly sounded at a meeting of Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov with his American counterpart Donald Rumsfeld in October 2004. Then, Russian officials since 2006 began to express their disappointment with the treaty and "show increased interest in the deployment of medium-range ground-based missiles." By 2007, the Russian Federation did “openly talk about its desire to put an end to or change the INF Treaty”.

Experts consider the report of the US State Department another attempt to “turn the arrows”. According to Konstantin Blokhin, an expert at the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Americans are trying to "probe the information field" and find various clues to shift the blame on Russia.

At the same time, he noted that the United States was "confused in the testimony", stating its withdrawal from the INF Treaty, either through the fault of the Russian Federation, or through the fault of China.

So, US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper on August 21 said that the recent test of a cruise missile was dictated by the need to contain China.

“(USA. - RT ) wanted to make sure that if necessary they had the means to deter inappropriate actions from China,” he said on Fox News.

And in order to carry out such deterrence, Esper noted, it is necessary to have "the ability to strike at it (China. - RT ) from medium range."

Stumbling rockets

Recall that the Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles was signed by the USA and the USSR in 1987. The parties pledged to destroy all such systems of ground-based ballistic and cruise missiles, and also not to develop them in the future.

In October 2018, Donald Trump announced the intention of the United States to withdraw from the agreement. Washington blamed Moscow for the destruction of the INF Treaty. In particular, the Russian Federation was accused of developing the 9M729 (SSC-8) missile, the range of which, according to the United States, exceeds 500 km.

At the same time, Russia has repeatedly noted that these charges have nothing to do with reality, and provided the characteristics of this missile.

In turn, Moscow indicated that Mk41 missile launchers located in Europe could be used to launch Tomahawk cruise missiles. According to the INF Treaty, the deployment of such launchers is prohibited.