The United States is gearing up to increase pressure on Russia over what it claims are Moscow's flagrant violations of an important Cold War-era arms treaty. The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty is a cornerstone arms control pact between the United States and Russia that halted a destabilizing buildup of intermediate-range nuclear missiles in Europe during the 1980s. The United States has accused Russia of developing, testing and deploying a cruise missile that violates the limits set by the INF, and Moscow in turn has accused Washington of deploying drones and missile launchers that violate the terms of the treaty. Last week, the U.S. State Department released a report in which it vehemently refuted Russia's claims. To pressure Moscow back into compliance with the treaty, the U.S. State Department also announced Dec. 8 that Washington was preparing to take military, diplomatic and economic measures over alleged infractions of the pivotal...
