Oren Dorell

USA TODAY

Russia secretly deployed a medium-range cruise missile in violation of a landmark arms control treaty with the United States, The New York Times reported Tuesday, citing anonymous U.S. officials.

The report comes as President Trump has said he would like to improve U.S. relations with Russia and President Vladimir Putin.

The ground-based missile is the same system that the Obama administration said in 2014 that Russia had tested in violation of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty that bans U.S. and Russia from having such missiles.

Russia continued work on the system, deploying two battalions of the prohibited cruise missile, the Times reported. One was kept at a test site at Kapustin Yar in southeast Russia, and the other was moved to another site in Russia, the newspaper said, citing an unnamed U.S. official.

State Department acting spokesman Mark Toner, declined to comment on the Times' report, but he said Russia "remains in violation" of the arms control treaty. The accord prohibits Russia's possession, production or testing of ground-launched cruise missiles with a range of 310 to 3,400 miles, or to possess launchers for such missiles.

"We have made very clear our concerns about Russia’s violation, the risks it poses to European and Asian security, and our strong interest in returning Russia to compliance with the treaty," Toner said in a statement. "The United States is committed to the continued viability of the (treaty) and is actively encouraging Russia to return to compliance.”