Nuclear buildup unlikely despite US threats: NATO chief

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says he does not expect a nuclear buildup in Europe, despite US threats to pull out of a Cold War-era missile agreement over allegations that Russia is violating it.

The US says that Russia’s 9M729 missile system contravenes the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty, and NATO allies agree that is probably the case.

The pact between Moscow and Washington bans an entire class of weapons — all land-based cruise and ballistic missiles with a range between 500 and 5,500 kilometres (310-3,410 miles).

Stoltenberg said Wednesday that “I don’t foresee that allies will deploy more nuclear weapons in Europe as a response to the new Russian missile.”

He said that NATO allies are now assessing “the implications of the new Russian missile for our security.”