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HELSINKI — Russian President Vladimir Putin says the test of a new U.S. missile banned under a now-defunct arms treaty has raised new threats to Russia and will warrant a response.
The Pentagon said it tested a modified ground-launched version of a Navy Tomahawk cruise missile, which accurately struck its target more than 500 kilometers (310 miles) away. Sunday’s test came after the U.S. and Russia withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty that banned such weapons.
Speaking after talks Wednesday with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, Putin argued that the quick test indicated the U.S. had begun work on the missile long before declaring its intention to withdraw from the pact.
He said that for Russia the test means “the emergence of new threats, to which we will react accordingly.”
