This archive report was first published on 2 August 2019.
On August 2, 2019, the Trump administration announced its decision to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, a landmark agreement signed in 1987 to limit the development and deployment of intermediate-range missiles.
According to American officials, the first test of new American intermediate-range missiles is expected to begin within weeks, with the first test likely to be a modified version of the Tomahawk cruise missile, capable of being fired from the ground.
Experts predict that if successful, the first ground-launched cruise missiles could be deployed within 18 months, with a new mobile, ground-launched ballistic missile with a range of 1,800 to 2,500 miles to follow by the end of the year.
However, the question of where to deploy these new missiles remains a pressing concern, with some experts suggesting that Japan and South Korea could be potential host countries, although any move to deploy the missiles there could infuriate China.
“I don’t think the Europeans want to host them,” said Gary Samore, the director of the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University. “The real question is where and whether or not there would be pushback,” added Bonnie S. Glaser, a senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
