China opposes US withdrawal from INF Treaty

Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday said the country opposes the US' move of withdrawing from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, calling on the US to "look before leaping".

Hua Chunying, the spokesperson from the ministry, made this remark after US President Donald Trump accused Russia of not honoring the agreement and threatened to pull out.

Hua has highlighted the importance of the treaty, saying it plays an important role in easing international tensions, controlling the nuclear process, and protecting global security in the past and present.

It is wrong of the US to unilaterally pull out of a landmark Cold War-era treaty, and will leavenumerous negative results, said Hua.

China hopes the US couldvalue thehard-earnedachievements and resolve theissue through negotiation and talk, she added.

The INF Treaty was signed by then US president Ronald Reagan and former Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987, in a bid to halt the proliferation of nuclear and conventional missiles.

The pact worked toward the elimination of short- and intermediate-range nuclear and conventional missiles by both countries.

(CGTN)