MOSCOW (AP) Russia said Saturday it will suspend participation in a key European arms control treaty, halting NATO inspections of its military sites and no longer limiting the numbers of its tanks and other heavy conventional weapons.
The move, threatened for months, added new tension to relations with the West already strained over U.S. plans to build a missile shield in Eastern Europe, Russian conflicts with its neighbors and Western criticism of Moscow's human rights record.
The suspension is to take place 150 days after Russia officially notifies all the countries concerned of its intention.
Experts said the move was a symbolic gesture rather than a sign of Russian intent to build up forces near its borders. The Kremlin, they said, appeared to be expressing its dissatisfaction with the perceived U.S. domination of global affairs, and positioning Russia as an unyielding global player.
The Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty was signed by Russian and NATO members in 1990, when Soviet and NATO troops faced off in Central Europe. It was amended in 1999 to reflect changes since the breakup of the Soviet Union, adding the requirement that Moscow withdraw its forces from the former Soviet republics of Moldova and Georgia.
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Yea, I thought they were our "friends" now...apparently only when it suits their world domination program. They lost most of the territory they gained during WWII with the stroke of a pen. Now, they pursue a strategy of intimidation and arm twisting. What changed exactly? Tactics. Back in the day, they would send in tanks and KGB. Now they extort with natural gas. Kind of a blessing I suppose.
Mr. Putin is using fear of US domination as a tool to maintain political control of his failing state. The big surprise will be when his own people choose western leaders as a replacement. Another Red revolution...this time with "feeling".
We bought a bunch of warhead components (pits) during the Clinton years. Smart move.
Appears as if you may get that military draft reinstatement after all!
CC
I don't doubt this at all