The future of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Force (INF) Treaty is in jeopardy. Reports of a Russian deployment of ground-launched cruise missiles (GLCMs) threaten to undermine the Treaty—one that not only eliminated an entire class of weapons, but has also proved instrumental in providing global nuclear security and the basis for several strategic arms agreements between the United States and Russia.
The U.S. Congress recently reached a compromise between both of their chambers’ versions of the the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), deciding to allocate $58 million to “counter Russia’s violation of the Treaty, including for research and development of a U.S. ground-launched cruise missile system.” While the development of this missile is in compliance of the treaty, it would undoubtedly be interpreted as a provocation by the Russians and could lead to the collapse of the treaty.
The above excerpt was originally published in The National Interest.
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