Moscow (AFP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday promised a "symmetrical response" to the US's recent trial of an intermediate-range missile, their first since the Cold War.
"I order the Russian Ministries of Defense and Foreign Affairs (...) to analyze the level of threat created for our country by the actions of the United States and to take comprehensive measures to prepare a symmetrical response," said Putin at a meeting of his Security Council.
This US test, carried out Sunday from San Nicolas Island, off Western California, according to the Pentagon, ratified the death of the INF disarmament treaty that abolishes use - by Russia and the United States only - land-based missiles with a range of 500 to 5,500 kilometers.
This treaty was officially suspended less than a month ago by the two rival powers, who accused each other of violating it.
Russia and China immediately condemned the trial, denouncing the risk of "escalating military tensions" and a revival of the arms race.
"It is obvious that (the US missile test) was not the result of an improvisation, but one more link in a chain of events planned for a long time," Putin said on Friday. "This only confirms the basis of our concerns expressed previously," he added.
But Putin said Russia "remains open to constructive dialogue on an equal footing with the United States to restore confidence and strengthen international security."
With the end of the INF Treaty, only one bilateral nuclear agreement between Moscow and Washington remains in force: the START Treaty, which maintains the nuclear arsenals of both countries well below the level of the Cold War. It must expire in 2021.
© 2019 AFP