Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is officially scrapped as of Saturday,

@Northwest I haven't checked the details, but some sources say the US has been in violation as well. Basically our missile defense systems could potentially nullify Russian arms permitted under the treaty, which is a capability Putin doesn't want to lose. So maybe these installations are in violation, either in their nature or in their position. I'm not certain. But on either case, yeah, the treaty's prospects are bleak.

@Xuan12 This is the excuse the Ruskies are using. You're probably right, as technically, our defense systems, are capable of carrying nukes, and intercepting long range ballistic missiles.

Frankly, I don't know why it matters at all. All it takes is a single missile launch, and cockroaches and scorpions will rule.

Wait, I know why it matters: because the defense industries, in the US, China, Russia and Europe, want to generate profit. Like Krupp, before them, they think war is illogical, so what's the big deal if they support Hitler, not his ideology, because he will push for more arms production.

@Northwest The Russian violation seems to be questionable - seems the propulsion portion of the missile is unchanged, so it's hard to see how it will have a drastically increased range. The warhead is even heavier. Really, unless Russians made drastic breakthroughs in efficiency, it's hard to see how this holds up.

[quote]Basically our missile defense systems could potentially nullify Russian arms permitted under the treaty, which is a capability Putin doesn't want to lose. So maybe these installations are in violation, either in their nature or in their position. I'm not certain.[/quote]
No, that's not really it. The missile defense systems we installed are seen by the Russians as a violation of the treaty, but not for the reasons you stated.

The whole "Aegis Ashore" system is basically the weapons and control module of an Aegis destroyer, but on land. Among others, Aegis launches missiles that would violate the treaty, were they launched from land. Aegis Ashore is claimed to not have the right electronics for those particular missiles, but Russians a) can't inspect the installation, and b) are convinced that we can quickly upgrade the electronics to do the job at our whim.

And they're probably right about that. Plus, on top of it, as it stands the whole thing is kind of poor at the task it's supposed to be there for, so it's natural to wonder if that's all we're envisioning for it.