Trump says U.S. will exit Reagan-era nuclear treaty with Russia

President Trump said Saturday evening he intends to withdraw the United States from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, a Reagan-era arms control agreement with Russia (originally the Soviet Union) that eliminated thousands of short- and intermediate-range nuclear missiles.
"Russia has violated the agreement. They've been violating it for many years," Trump said. "And I don't know why President Obama didn't negotiate or pull out. And we're not going to let them violate a nuclear agreement and go out and do weapons and we're not allowed to."
NATO has confirmed Russian missile tests in the past decade likely violate the deal. "Russia has not provided any credible answers on this new missile," NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said this month. "All allies agree that the most plausible assessment would be that Russia is in violation of the treaty. It is therefore urgent that Russia addresses these concerns in a substantial and transparent manner."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In early October, Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison, the United States' permanent representative to NATO, said "countermeasures would be to take out the missiles that are in development by Russia in violation of the treaty" if Moscow does not change course.
The INF Treaty was originally signed in 1987 between then-President Ronald Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev. It took effect in 1988.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.
-
6 refreshing homes in Miami
Feature Featuring a home previously owned by concert pianist Ruth Greenfield in Spring Garden and a wraparound balcony in Coconut Grove
By The Week Staff Published
-
Pagan Kennedy's 6 favorite books that inspire resistance
Feature The author recommends works by Patrick Radden Keefe, Margaret Atwood, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Argentina's gene-edited horses
Under the Radar Scientists in the polo-obsessed nation have produced world's first genetically edited horses, designed to outrun champion mare whose DNA they (mostly) share
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Judge says White House defying order to spend funds
Speed Read U.S. District Judge John McConnell has ordered the Trump administration to restore federal funding it tried to freeze
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump DOJ orders end to charges against NYC mayor
Speed Read The Justice Department has dropped charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who was charged with bribery and fraud
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump team aims to shut consumer finance watchdog
Speed Read The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau was established after the 2008 financial crisis to investigate corporate fraud and protect consumers
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Federal judges block Trump citizenship order
Speed Read A second judge has blocked the president's order to end citizenship for children born on American soil to parents without legal status
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
DOGE official at Treasury resigns after racist posts
Speed Read Marko Elez's ability to access the Treasury's central government payment system has been rescinded
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Trump orders ban on trans female athletes
speed read The order directs the federal government to withhold funding from schools that do not comply
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Musk's DOGE gains access to Medicare, eyes FAA
speed read The billionaire said his Department of Government Efficiency will make 'rapid safety upgrades' to our air traffic control systems
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published