Russia decries US missile test, warns of destabilization A top Russian diplomat has lamented the U.S. test of a type of missile that was banned for decades before both Washington and Moscow quit the treaty earlier this year

MOSCOW -- A top Russian diplomat has lamented the U.S. test of a type of missile that was banned for decades before both Washington and Moscow quit the treaty earlier this year.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov in comments to the state-owned RIA Novosti news agency on Tuesday expressed concern that the United States is increasing "the destabilizing potential" of the issue.

Ryabkov also said that the test proved Russia's earlier suspicions that the U.S. was testing the banned missiles even before it withdrew from the treaty.

The U.S. military on Sunday flight-tested a ground-launched version of a cruise missile off the coast of California. The missile was previously banned by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.