NATO Defence Ministers discussed on Wednesday 13 February, what action they could take after the end of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF). The United States launched the withdrawal procedure from the Treaty on 2 February and Russia now has six months to comply with the Treaty.
“NATO is currently assessing the consequences of Russia's breach of the Treaty. I will not pre-empt the outcome of this process, but any steps we take will be defensive, measured and coordinated," said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. He pointed out that there was a wide range of options, including conventional, but he refused to speculate. For the Secretary General, the challenge is to find a balance between firmness and preventing a new arms race. He added that the Alliance did not have to mirror Russian actions.
"NATO will continue to maintain credible and effective deterrence and defence. At the same time, Allies remain committed to effective arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation,” summarised the Secretary General of the Alliance.
While Mr Stoltenberg stressed that NATO had no "intention to deploy new nuclear land-based weapons systems in Europe”, some member countries were less categorical. “Precisely because we are at the start of the discussion, it is important that we do not start creating hierarchies or take out individual points, but that we really leave the full lineup on the table”, said German Ursula von der Leyen, ahead of the discussions. For the Minister, the response to the violation of the treaty must be " a wise and balanced combination of measures" and "these are not only purely military issues, but also economic and political issues".
Britain's Gavin Williamson also felt that "all options should be kept open as to how best to deal with" the end of the Treaty. “If the Allies believe that increased nuclear deterrence is the solution [...], then we will have to do what is necessary. For the time being, we are determined to believe that this is not necessary. I cannot speak for the future," a NATO source said.
While reflecting on the post-INF period, member countries keep repeating that the objective is for Russia to bring itself back into compliance with the agreement in a “transparent and verifiable manner” before the effective withdrawal of the United States on 2 August. According to a NATO source, this means destroying missiles, launchers and associated equipment.
Mr Stoltenberg, like the member countries, will therefore continue the dialogue with the Russians. He announced that he hoped to meet with Russian Minister Sergei Lavrov at the Munich conference. "I expect to meet Minister Lavrov in Munich. It is important to have a dialogue when dealing with so many problems as we are facing today [...] with increased tensions, with the violation of the INF Treaty,” he said. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)