World War 3 fears surged when Trump withdrew from the INF treaty on Friday (Image: GETTY)
Trump announced his withdrawal from the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty on Friday in a move which threatens to undermine peace and stability between Russia and the US. The President said the nuclear weapons accord, struck between the US and the Soviet Union in 1987, had been violated by Moscow because of the development of a new missile. But Moscow maintains it is not in breach of the treaty.
Railing against Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Trump accused the superpower of flouting the INF accord.
The inflammatory accusations have sent tensions soaring between the two world powers amid ominous threats of retaliation.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo first announced on Friday the Trump administration's decision to officially suspend its compliance with the 1987 treaty.
The US accused Russia of developing a new missile that would breach the banned 310-to-3,420-mile range limit for land-based systems, with the senior diplomat arguing “Russia’s violation puts millions of Europeans and Americans at greater risk” and “aims to put the United States at a military disadvantage”.
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Trump news: the President said Russia was flouting the historic nuclear accord