'We will respond': NATO warns Russia to destroy a new nuclear missile or face consequ

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'We will respond': NATO warns Russia to destroy a new nuclear missile or face consequences after the Kremlin warned of repeat of Cuban crisis and sent warship to Havana
By: ROSS IBBETSON FOR MAILONLINE & Daily Mail UK - 6-25-19
RE: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...an-crisis.html

1 - NATO has warned Russia to destroy its nuclear missile in breach of 1987 treaty
2 - Washington and Kremlin are involved in face-off over the new nuclear system
3 - NATO said today, 'We will need to respond,' unless Russia disarm the weapon
4 - On Monday, the Russian navy arrived at Havana with echoes of the missile crisis

NATO has warned Russia to destroy a new nuclear missile or face the consequences after the Kremlin warned of a repeat of the Cuban crisis and sent a ship to Havana.

Allied defence ministers issued the stark warning to the Kremlin today amid a Moscow face-off with Washington over a treaty keeping land-based nuclear warheads out of Europe.

The U.S. has said they will pull out of the Reagan-era Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) unless Russia destroys its nuclear-capable cruise missile system.

On Monday, the Kremlin warned of a Cuban Missile Crisis-style confrontation as one of its frigates arrived in Havana.

Moscow has warned the Americans against deploying land-based missiles on its border and are seeking to show strength in deploying the highly advanced warship.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov threatened an escalation 'to the hilt' if the weapons systems remain in place.

Ryabkov said: 'If it really comes to deploying such systems on land, the situation will not just become complicated, it will escalate up to the hilt.'

NATO defence ministers will discuss on Wednesday their next steps if Moscow keeps the missile system in breach of the INF.

'We call on Russia to take the responsible path, but we have seen no indication that Russia intends to do so,' Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference.

'We will need to respond,' Stoltenberg said.

He declined to go into more details. But diplomats said defence ministers will consider more flights over Europe by U.S. warplanes capable of carrying nuclear warheads, more military training and the re-positioning U.S. sea-based missiles.

The United States and its NATO allies want Russia to destroy its 9M729/SSC-8 nuclear-capable cruise missile system, which Moscow has so far refused to do.

It denies any violations of the INF treaty, accusing Washington of seeking an arms race.

Without a deal, the United States has said it will withdraw from the INF treaty on August 2, removing constraints on its own ability to develop nuclear-capable, medium-range missiles.

1st - Photo link: https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/06...1472389161.jpg
The Russian Navy's Admiral Gorshkov's frigate arrived at Havana's port on Monday

2nd - Photo link: https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01...8953990233.jpg
The Russian Novatar 9M729 ground-based cruise missile system is accused by the U.S. of breaching the INF treaty which Russia denies

The dispute has deepened a fissure in East-West ties that severely deteriorated after Russia's seizure of Crimea and its involvement in Syria.

U.S. Ambassador to NATO Kay Bailey Hutchison told reporters that at present, Washington was only considering conventional, not nuclear weapons, in any possible response.

'All options are on the table but we are looking at conventional systems, that's important for our European allies to know,' she said.

European allies are also worried about the deployment of U.S. nuclear missiles in Europe, as happened in the 1980s, and being caught up in nuclear competition between Moscow and Washington.

The INF treaty, negotiated by then-President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and ratified by the U.S. Senate, eliminated the medium-range missile arsenals of the world's two biggest nuclear powers and reduced their ability to launch a nuclear strike at short notice.

The treaty bans land-based missiles with a range between 300 and 3,400 miles.

3rd photo link (not in Cuba that we know of): https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/06...1473100499.jpg
Deadly load: A quasi-ballistic missile being loaded into an Iskander-M system by Russian troops at a firing range

US activity in Eastern Europe has increased in recent months, with the threat of military bases springing up in the region.

Last week the Pentagon approved $250 million in military aid to Ukraine, which is still at war with Russian-backed separatists in the east of the country over the annexation of Crimea in 2014.

The Department of Defense said the support would include sniper rifles, rocket-propelled grenade launchers, counter-artillery radars, electronic warfare detection systems, night vision and military medical supplies.

Earlier this month President Trump said he would divert 1,000 more US troops of the 52,000 based in Germany to Poland, but stopped short of committing to a new American base in the country.

In February the US gave notice of its intention to withdraw from the INF, setting the stage for it to terminate in six months unless Moscow returns to compliance. Russia has denied any breaches, and accused the US of violating the pact.

President Vladimir Putin then suspended Russia's obligations under the terms of the INF treaty and said hold would remain in place 'until the US ends its violations of the treaty or until it terminates'.

The Cuban Missile Crisis erupted in 1962 when Moscow responded to a US missile deployment in Turkey by sending ballistic missiles to Cuba, sparking a standoff that brought the world to the brink of nuclear war.

Fidel Castro allowed the Soviet Union to deploy nuclear missiles in Cuba after America's failed attempt to overthrow him, meaning Russia could target nearly every US city before any retaliatory strikes could be launched.