After INF Treaty Demise, US Seeks Funding for Missile Tests

Friday marked the deadline during which the United States formally withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. This led to quick statements from NATO, and certain NATO members like Poland and Britain, saying the treaty’s failure was all Russia’s fault.

With the treaty now officially gone, the Pentagon is acting quick to start testing and developing new intermediate-range nuclear tests, since of course such missiles couldn’t be developed since 1987.

Officials are concerned, however, that in bankrolling nuclear-capable missiles that were up until yesterday illegal to develop, they don’t have enough money set aside, and US officials say that they are concerned House Democrats may resist further funding.

Defense officials were already criticizing Congress for not giving them more money to develop the missiles, saying “it’s going to help Russia” to not spend more money on nuclear-capable arms.

Russia, for their part, issued an offer for the US to join them in announcing a temporary moratorium on deploying any intermediate-range nuclear missiles to try to prevent a race to put a bunch of more nuclear arms into the theater in Europe.

The US is unlikely to agree to such a deal, as the Pentagon seems to have been salivating, from the moment the INF’s collapse was suggested, about the chance to get a bunch of new missiles into testing.