WASHINGTON – A State Department arms control official says the U.S. is considering taking economic measures against Russia for violating a key nuclear weapons treaty.
Rose Gottemoeller, undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, told a House panel on Wednesday that the U.S. also is looking at what can be done militarily to make sure Russia does not gain a significant military advantage from violating the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty signed with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987.
The treaty says the U.S. and Russia cannot possess, produce or test-fly a ground-launched cruise missile with a range of 300 to 3,400 miles.
Russia denies being in violation.
Congress has been stepping up pressure on the White House for months to confront Russia over the treaty violation.
