With the end of the INF Treaty, a piece of Europe’s security has been lost. At the height of the Cold War, the US and the Soviet Union agreed to disarm medium-range nuclear missiles in Europe.
I firmly believe that we must manage once again today to agree to rules on disarmament and arms control in order to prevent a new nuclear arms race. The challenges that we now face have become greater as a result of the end of the Treaty and are no longer only confined to Europe.
We have ensured, not least in the UN Security Council, that nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation are back on the agenda. We want to inject impetus into the efforts to strengthen the global disarmament architecture in the 21st century. This will help us to overcome outdated ways of thinking and mistrust. Clear agreements can give rise to trust. All those in positions of responsibility must do their part if this is to succeed.
We regret the fact that Russia has not done what was necessary to save the INF Treaty. We therefore now call on Russia and the US all the more urgently to preserve the New START Treaty as a cornerstone of global arms control. Nuclear powers such as China, which wield more clout in the world than during the Cold War, must face up to their responsibility in the area of arms control.