Russia Ready Not to Deploy 9M729 Missiles in European Part if NATO Reciprocates - Putin

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th October, 2020) Russia is ready to refrain from deploying 9M729 missiles in its European part if NATO responds in kind, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Monday in a statement.

"While maintaining that 9M729 missile fully complies with the now defunct INF Treaty, Russia is nonetheless willing, as a goodwill gesture, to continue refraining from deployment of 9M729 missiles in its European part, but only if NATO countries reciprocate and avoid deployment of missiles that used to be banned under the INF treaty in Europe," the president said in a statement published by the Kremlin.

Putin has invited NATO to consider mutual verification mechanisms to eliminate any tensions over the intermediate- and short-range missiles. The president suggested, namely, carrying out checks for Aegis Ashore missile systems with Mk-41 launchers at US and NATO bases in Europe as well as checks for 9M729 missiles at Russian facilities in the Kaliningrad region. According to the president, such checks would help verify that the there are no land-based intermediate- and short-range missile systems in the designated areas and no weapons on whose class the sides failed to agree (9M729)