MOSCOW -- Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed Monday that NATO and Russia should conduct mutual inspections of each other's military bases to secure a moratorium on the deployment of new missiles in Europe after last year's demise of a U.S.-Russia nuclear arms pact.
Both countries pulled out of the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty last year, blaming each other for violations. Nevertheless, Putin has pledged not to deploy the weapons that were outlawed by the treaty as long as the U.S. doesn't deploy such arms to Europe.
Washington has scoffed at Putin's statements, charging that Russia already has deployed missiles that violate the treaty's provisions -- a claim Moscow has rejected.
On Monday, Putin followed up on his earlier statements by offering to allow the U.S. and its NATO allies to conduct on-site inspections to make sure the weapons previously banned aren't deployed to Europe.
The U.S. pulling out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces Treaty "was a serious mistake that exacerbated the risks of a missile weapons race, growth of the confrontation potential and slide into uncontrolled escalation," Putin said in a statement.
"In a situation like this, vigorous efforts are needed to ease the shortage of trust, to strengthen regional and global stability, and to reduce the risks stemming from misunderstandings and disagreements in the field of missile weapons," the Russian president added.
He said that as part of mutual inspections, Russian experts could visit the U.S. missile defense facilities in Europe to make sure they can't be adapted for launching surface-to-surface missiles instead of interceptor missiles, which Moscow has been concerned about.
Russia would offer NATO access to inspect Russian units in the nation's westernmost Kaliningrad exclave, to make sure they aren't equipped with 9M729 ground-launched cruise missiles.
The U.S. has accused Russia of violating the treaty by deploying these missiles, a claim Russia has denied. Putin on Monday reiterated that Russia had not breached the pact by fielding the missiles, but said it could refrain from deploying them in the western part of the country "in the spirit of good will" for as long as NATO doesn't station weapons previously banned by the treaty in Europe.
JAPAN REJECTS BAN
Also Monday, Japan said it will not sign a U.N. treaty that bans nuclear weapons and does not welcome its entry into force next year, rejecting the wishes of atomic bomb survivors in Japan who are urging the government to join and work for a nuclear-free world.
The United Nations confirmed Saturday that 50 countries have ratified the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, paving the way for its entry into force in 90 days.
The announcement was hailed by anti-nuclear activists, but the treaty has been strongly opposed by the United States and other major nuclear powers.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said Japan shares the goal of achieving a nuclear-free world, but does not think the treaty is the way to go.
"Japan's approach is different from that of the treaty, and there is no change to our position not to sign it, as we have said," Kato told reporters Monday. "We doubt if support is growing even among non-nuclear weapons states, let alone nuclear weapons states."
Japan has said that it is not realistic to pursue the treaty with nuclear powers and non-nuclear weapons states sharply divided over it. Kato said Japan has chosen instead to serve as a bridge to narrow the gap between the two sides.
Japan has decided not to sign the treaty even though it is the world's only country to have suffered nuclear attacks and has renounced its own possession, production or hosting of nuclear weapons.
That is because Japan hosts 50,000 American troops and is protected by the U.S. nuclear umbrella. Its post-World War II security pact with the U.S. also complicates efforts to get Japan to sign the treaty as it beefs up its own military to deal with perceived threats from North Korea and China.
Information for this article was contributed by Vladimir Isachenkov and Mari Yamaguchi of The Associated Press.