Russian President Vladimir Putin warned it would aim new advanced weapons against the U.S. should it deploy intermediate-range missiles in Europe, raising the stakes after the break down of a Cold War-era nuclear treaty
https://on.wsj.com/2DZpRlw
Earlier today, Vladimir Putin gave his state-of-the-nation address in the capital of Moscow, of which the Russian President made headlines for what's being perceived as a threat towards the United States. During the speech, Putin referenced how the Trump administration had recently withdrawn from a treaty established during the Cold War, while giving a stern warning that it would aim their own missiles at the U.S. if Washington deployed new intermediate-range missiles in Europe.
Back in February, the Trump administration did announce that they would withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty, which was signed back in 1987 by President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. In providing a reason for abandoning the agreement, Trump accused Moscow of violating the treaty with “impunity” by deploying banned missiles, while also saying that the U.S. would “move forward” with developing its own military response to Russia’s deployment of banned cruise missiles that could target Western Europe.
Therefore, in his response given to the Russian Federal Assembly, Putin denied any treaty violations on his part, while saying that Russia will have no choice other than to aim its own weapons at the U.S. as a matter of national security.
"Russia will be forced to create and deploy those types of weapons," Putin said during his speech, "which could be used not only against those regions from where we will face a direct threat, but also against those regions, hosting the centers, where decisions are taken on using those missile systems threatening us."
Elsewhere in his speech, Putin noted that U.S. missiles deployed in Europe would take only 10 to 12 minutes to hit Moscow, while praising Russia's new nuclear-powered cruise missiles and nuclear-powered underwater drones that have undergone successful testing. One of those missiles he identified as the "Zircon," which he claimed could fly at nine times the speed of sound with a range of 620 miles.
"This is a very serious danger to us," he later added, "In this case, we will be forced, and I want to stress this, we will be forced to envisage tit-for-tat and asymmetric measures."
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