Russia may unilaterally withdraw from INF Treaty :Top military offic

Moscow, Feb 15 (UNI) Russia may unilaterally withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty between Russia and the US on the elimination of intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles, the Chief General Staff of Russian Armed Forces General Yury Baluyevsky said today.

''It is possible for a party to abandon the treaty (unilaterally) if it provides convincing evidence that it is necessary to do so,'' Mr Baluyevsky told RIA Novosti new agency adding, ''We have such evidence at present.'' Unfortunately, by adhering to the INF treaty, Russia lost many unique missile systems, he said pointing out that many countries were currently developing and modernising medium-range missiles.

The former Soviet Union and the US signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) on December 8, 1987. The agreement came into force in June 1988 and does not have a specific duration.

The INF treaty eliminated nuclear and conventional ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 kilometers.

By the treaty's deadline of June 1, 1991, a total of 2,692 such weapons had been destroyed, 846 by the US and 1,846 by the Soviet Union.

Russian experts said, Mr Baluyevsky's remarks could be interpreted as a strong warning to the US on its plans to deploy elements of its anti-missile defence system in Poland and the Czech Republic, and as a follow up to recent statements made by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov, at the Munich international security conference.

Mr Putin said on February 10 that deployment of a US missile defence system in Central Europe could trigger a new arms race.

Moscow has strongly opposed the deployment of a missile shield in its former backyard in Central Europe, describing the plans as a threat to Russian national security.

UNI