BEIJING: China deeply regrets the United States’ insistence on withdrawing from the Open Skies Treaty (OST) regardless of opposition from the international community, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Monday.
Spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks when asked to comment on the United States’ announcement that it would withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies, a major international arms control agreement.
Zhao said the U.S. decision will damage mutual military trust and transparency between countries in the region, and it will not be conducive to regional security and stability. The decision will negatively affect the international arms control and disarmament process, Zhao added.
He called on the U.S. to carefully accommodate the concerns of relevant parties, including Russia, as well as the international community, and to resolve differences through dialogue. Wantonly withdrawing from international treaties is not a proper practice for a major country, Zhao said.
The United States On Sunday formally withdrawn from the Treaty on Open Skies, an agreement that sought to foster trust by allowing the 34 participating nations to observe one another’s militaries through unarmed flyovers. A US Department of State spokesman said that six months had passed since the US in May had notified countries party to the agreement that it was withdrawing.
As of Sunday, “The United States is no longer a State Party to the Treaty on Open Skies,” the statement said.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, on Twitter, said “America is more secure” because of the withdrawal, while adding “Russia remains in non-compliance with its obligations”.
Russia has been accused of repeatedly violating the treating by blocking surveillance flights around certain areas, including the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad and the border with Georgia, as well as denying flights over Russian military exercises. The arms control agreement, negotiated in 1992, allowed the participating nations, including the US and Russia, to conduct unarmed observation flights over one another’s territory. – Agencies
