What is Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty?
[[Image:Reagan and Gorbachev signing.jpg|thumb|300px|right|U.S. President [[Ronald Reagan]] and Soviet General Secretary [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] signing the INF Treaty in the [[East Room]] at the [[White House]] in 1987.]] The '''Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty''' ('''INF''') is a 1987 agreement between the [[United States]] and the [[Soviet Union]]. It was signed in [[Washington, D.C.]] by [[President of the United States|U.S. President]] [[Ronald Reagan]] and [[General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union|General Secretary]] [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] on December 8, 1987. It was ratified by the [[United States Senate]] on May 27, 1988 and came into force on June 1 of that year. The treaty is formally titled '''''The Treaty Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Elimination of Their Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles'''''. The treaty eliminated [[Nuclear weapon|nuclear]] and [[Conventional weapon|conventional]] ground-launched [[Ballistic missile|ballistic]] and [[cruise missile]]s with intermediate ranges of 500–5,500&nbsp;km (300-3,400 miles).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/29/world/europe/us-says-russia-tested-cruise-missile-in-violation-of-treaty.html?_r=0|title=U.S. Says Russia Tested Cruise Missile, Violating Treaty|publisher=[[New York Times]].com|accessdate=August 31, 2014}}</ref> In 2012 the United States complained about Russian treaty violations.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/natosource/us-disclosed-to-some-but-not-all-nato-allies-that-russia-violated-inf-treaty |title= US Reluctant to Disclose to All NATO Allies that Russia is Violating INF Treaty |last1=Rogin |first1=Josh |date=7 December 2013 |website=atlanticcouncil.org |publisher=Daily Beast |accessdate=7 December 2013}}</ref> The two systems that appear to be violations are the R-500, a cruise missile using the [[9K720 Iskander]] launcher, and a short ranged ICBM.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-