At a campaign rally on Saturday October 20th, 2018, President Trump abruptly announced that he would “terminate” the INF Treaty with Russia.
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty was signed President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev 987, essentially stalling the arms race of the Cold War. This treaty eliminated an entire class of ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 500 to 5,500 km (300 to 3,500 miles), and two countries destroyed more than 2,500 weapons between them.
However in the past 30 years, there has been contentious back and forth between Russia and the US with accusations of each country violating the terms of the treaty. In 2012 President Obama accused Russia of violating the treaty with new cruise missile testing while Russia believes that US bases in Europe and use of drones are their own violations.
With the potential termination of the INF Treaty, it calls into question other arms treaties such as New Strategic Arms Reductions Treaty (New START) which is set to expire in 2021, drawing serious concerns about the direction and progress of nuclear arms control.
Trump’s decision to end the INF treaty has the benefit of reminding the public that the conversation around nuclear weapons needs to reprioritized, especially in dialogue between the US and Russia.