Russia temporarily pulls out of weapons inspection treaty

MOSCOW (AP) — Russia’s Foreign Ministry has announced that Moscow was temporarily withdrawing from the inspection regime under a key bilateral nuclear arms reduction treaty with the U.S. The ministry said Monday that Western sanctions made it impossible for Russia to enforce the New START Treaty on equal footing. It said the sanctions effectively barred Russian inspectors from carrying out activities on U.S. soil. And it cited obstacles including the barring of Russian planes from U.S. airspace and the tightening of visa requirements for Russian inspectors. The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty was signed by President Barack Obama and then-Russian President Dmitriy Medvedev in 2010. It expires in 2026.