MOSCOW, August 2. /TASS/. Moscow is calling on Washington to abandon the plans to deploy the ground-based intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles it is creating, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Friday following the US withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty) and its termination.

"We are urging the US to abandon [plans] to deploy the missiles of these ranges [intermediate-range and shorter-range — TASS] it is creating, which is unfortunately now being discussed by the Pentagon, and follow Russia’s example, taking all the necessary steps to ensure global stability and predictability. Otherwise, Washington will bear sole responsibility for the exacerbation of tensions in the world," the statement reads.

The statement claims that the United States has set the course to destroy all international agreements it doesn’t like, which will result in the dismantling of the arms control system. "The termination of the INF Treaty proves that the United States has set the course to dismantle all international agreements it’s not comfortable with for some reason," the statement reads. "This leads to the actual dismantling of the existing system of arms control," the Russian Foreign Ministry added.

The Foreign Ministry specified that Washington had made a terrible mistake by deliberately creating a virtually insurmountable crisis around the INF Treaty. "The reasoning behind it is clear, the US wanted to dismiss the imposed restrictions. Washington had been blatantly disregarding Moscow’s concerns over the US compliance with the treaty for many years. It is worth noting that the deployment of the Mark 41 Vertical Launching System, which is capable of firing intermediate-range cruise missiles, on the US military bases in Europe alone is a brazen violation of the treaty," the diplomatic agency stressed.

The US side put forward inherently unacceptable ultimatum-like demands for Russia to consider, rejecting all Moscow’s proposals. "The US representatives were hypocritically hiding behind the ideas that the INF Treaty is out of date and needs to include other countries," the ministry emphasized. "The INF Treaty denunciation confirms that the US is pursuing a policy of destroying all the international agreements that are not favored in Washington for certain reasons. This leads us to a practical collapse of the existing arms control system."

Meanwhile Russia stays ready to negotiate with the United States so as to restore confidence and strengthen international security, Russia’s Foreign Ministry continues in its statement.

"Russia stays open to an equal and constructive dialogue with the United States aimed at rebuilding trust and strengthening international security," the ministry said. "We are hoping for the US side’s responsible approach."