MOSCOW, August 20. /TASS/: The test of a cruise missile with a range prohibited by the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty conducted by the United States is regrettable, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told TASS on Tuesday.
"All that is regrettable. The United States has evidently set a course for mounting military tensions. We do not give in to provocations," he stressed.
The test of a cruise missile indicates that Washington had been developing such systems for a long time, according to Ryabkov.
"There can hardly be a clearer and more explicit confirmation of the fact that the United States has been developing such systems for a long time, and preparations for withdrawing from the agreement included, in particular, the relevant research and development," he noted.
Ryabkov also stated that Moscow will not give in to provocations in the wake of the cruise missile test conducted by the United States and will continue to comply with a moratorium on deploying these systems.
"We do not give in to provocations. As Russian President [Vladimir Putin] said in France yesterday, we reiterate our commitment to a unilateral moratorium on deploying land-based intermediate-range systems until the US deploys such systems in some part of the world," he said.
