MOSCOW, October 21. /TASS/. US President Donald Trump’s statement on withdrawing from the Russian-US Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty) may be considered as the continuing blackmail, Head of Russian Federation Council's International Affairs Committee Konstantin Kosachev said.

"I recall that Article 15 of the Treaty envisages a unilateral pullout from it but upon exceptional circumstances, with their substantiation within six months. So far, no official steps towards this have been made, and this gives grounds to consider Trump’s statement as the continuing blackmail rather than an accomplished act of law," Kosachev wrote on his Facebook page.

The cancellation of the INF Treaty may trigger a war, Konstantin Kosachev warned, calling to convene the UN Security Council to discuss the "critical" situation.

"Consultations should be held between four nuclear powers [without the US] and there should be an urgent discussion at the Disarmament Conference in Geneva and a discussion by the United Nations Security Council. The situation is critical, and the threats to peace are getting a particular shape," Kosachev wrote on his Facebook page.

"Now the Western allies of the US need to make a choice: either to opt for the same path, which possibly leads to a new war, or take the side of a common sense, judging by the instinct for self-preservation. That’s because hardly anybody will survive a nuclear conflict, which is approaching after the US unilateral decision on the INF Treaty," he said.

The cancellation of the INF Treaty may trigger a war, Head of Russian Federation Council's International Affairs Committee warned, calling to convene the UN Security Council to discuss the "critical" situation.

"Consultations should be held between four nuclear powers [without the US] and there should be an urgent discussion at the Disarmament Conference in Geneva and a discussion by the United Nations Security Council. The situation is critical, and the threats to peace are getting a particular shape," Kosachev wrote on his Facebook page, noting that it is impossible to counter aggression alone.

"Now the Western allies of the US need to make a choice: either to opt for the same path, which possibly leads to a new war, or take the side of a common sense, judging by the instinct for self-preservation. That’s because hardly anybody will survive a nuclear conflict, which is approaching after the US unilateral decision on the INF Treaty," he said.

The Russian senator dismissed Trump’s statement on leaving the INF Treaty as blackmail. "I recall that Article 15 of the Treaty envisages a unilateral pullout from it but upon exceptional circumstances, with their substantiation within six months. So far, no official steps towards this have been made, and this gives grounds to consider Trump’s statement as the continuing blackmail rather than an accomplished act of law," Kosachev said.

Washington is seeking any options to destroy the system of agreements on the balance of nuclear forces in the world developed during the Cold War, the senator said. "The US does not need the balance of forces anymore. The Americans are seeking unilateral military superiority in the sphere of nuclear and conventional armaments to impose on the world their will and their interests," he said.

Washington started ruining the agreements back in 2002 with terminating the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and continues this now by expanding NATO, Kosachev noted, dismissing this as "unilateral aggression."

The US accusations against Russia of violating the INF Treaty are vague, while Russia’s charges are rather particular, namely the missile shield in Poland and Romania, the missiles used as training targets, and also heavy lift drones, Kosachev said.

According to the senator, the US claims of Russia’s violations of the INF Treaty have never been confirmed at the level of experts at the Special Verification Commission.

The INF Treaty was signed between the Soviet Union and the United States on December 8, 1987 in Washington, DC. In December 2017, the US Department of State warned that Washington would slap economic and military measures should Moscow fail to comply with the agreement. The State Department warned that Washington would review military concepts and options for conventional, ground-launched, intermediate-range missile systems. "Should the Russian Federation’s actions result in the collapse of the Treaty, these efforts will prepare the United States to defend itself and its allies," it said.

On Saturday, US President Donald Trump said that Washington would withdraw from the INF Treaty because Russia was violating the terms of the agreement. At the same time, he did not rule out signing a new agreement on intermediate-range nuclear forces with Moscow and Beijing if Russia and China provide guarantees of halting the production of such weapons.