Russian President Vladimir Putin held his 14th annual end-of-the-year press conference on 20 December, having touched upon a wide array of issues, including relations with the US and Ukraine, anti-Russia sanctions, and arms control.
Arms Control
During the press conference that lasted almost four hours, President Vladimir Putin answered 66 questions, including on arms control.
The president pointed to the fact that the arms control regime was falling apart across the world.
LIVE UPDATES: Putin Holds Annual Year-End Press Conference
The repercussions of the US decision to withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty were unpredictable and could lead to a global catastrophe, the president stressed.
Putin has elaborated that today there's a trend of lowering the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons, but Russia knows how to ensure its own security.
In early December, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced that Washington would suspend its obligations under the 1987 INF Treaty within 60 days if Russia didn't return to full compliance. Moscow, in turn, has repeatedly stated that the accusations of violations of the accord on its part were baseless.
US Withdrawal From Syria
Dwelling on President Donald Trump's earlier announcement that all 2,000 US troops would leave Syria following their victory over Daesh*, Putin said that he was not sure of the terms of the withdrawal, because the US has maintained its presence…
