Do It, Or Else.

That is Pompeo's "ultimatum" to Russia to "comply" with INF Treaty within 60 days. What Pompeo and neocon cabal in D.C. do not understand is that Moscow knows America's behavior several steps ahead. It is easy to forecast since Empire is nauseatingly predictable in self-destructing behavior. As was expected, Russian response to US was "or else what?" The bluff, yet again, will be called and the US will exit both INF and START treaties (START will follow later) because US still thinks that it is scary--it is scary, alright, in a sense of a monkey with a grenade, but in terms of actual policies and actions--US can do very little to influence Russia and, in order to stop Nord Stream-2, among other things will continue to increase the number of provocations akin to Kerch Strait snafu. But, American vassals in Europe are also getting a bit jittery. 

Der Spiegel still asks what will happen if Moscow disagrees with ultimatum (Google will do the job)? 

Dort aber endet die Einigkeit auch schon - denn was passiert, sollte Moskau nicht einknicken, ist offen. Das Problem: Russland besitzt ein Waffensystem, das die militärische Balance in Europa gefährdet. Wolle man Russland wirkungsvoll von weiteren Aggressionen abschrecken, das sagen selbst moderate Experten, werde die Nato wohl wieder aufrüsten müssen. In Frage kommt dann entweder der massive Ausbau der Raketenabwehr in Europa oder die Stationierung neuer nuklearer Mittelstreckenwaffen. 

Well, Der Spiegel is slow, Russia already explicitly stated that it has all means to counter, if need be, and if Germany and Europe really want to draw large fat targets on their maps--they might as well do it now. Russia has means which cannot be stopped by any existing or perspective anti-missile systems, so militarily it really doesn't matter for Russia. For Europe? 

Well, US also wants to exit INF for a number of Chinese "reasons", since China's defense rests to a large degree with China's medium and short range missile technology which comes very handy for the First Island Chain strategies. But while at it, the US sees a great opportunity to coral Euro-wussies and in doing so also stop this proverbial natural gas pipe from being completed, thus making primarily German industry, inevitably, less competitive and more reliant on her big boss across Atlantic. As one observer noted recently, Germany needs Nord Stream-2 way more than Russia does. This is a fact. The sabotage of the Nord Stream-2 will mean much higher energy costs for already high energy share costs of German machine-building complex (Germany's crown jewel) and that means a chance for the US to save herself by becoming an energy exporter (it is most likely a utopian dream but...) and more competitive on the European market. 

To understand that European elites, most of whom were grown and conditioned within the confines of American system of elites' manufacturing, are stupid is not difficult. There is another suicidal client in Europe and it is France. No, I am not talking about riots. As Ria (in Russian) gave a superb review of France's nuclear power energy sector, France declared that she will be shutting down a truck load of its nuclear power stations in the nearest future and will concentrate more on "renewable" sources. Last time I checked, France has a common border with Germany--why wouldn't French ask what happened to Germany's energy sector "managed" by Greens' lobby? French announced an impending closure of a number of her nuclear-power stations, whose share in France's electricity production is 71+%, the highest in the world. But no, France decided to screw herself on the advice of former French "environment" minister Nicholas Hulot whose competencies in energy sector are...drum roll in journalism and environmental activism. Well, you get the picture. So, for all intents and purposes, Russians do not really have anyone with competencies and real power to talk to in the combined West. Western elites are simply incompetent.

The US, and Trump, are not treaty-worthy because the US is not really governable anymore, Europeans are too "liberal" and globalist to follow own real interests--so, how do you deal with them? You just step back and let them do their own thing but you keep your whip ready. Combined West is imploding and there is no denial of this fact. The last remaining vestiges of competence in business are not applicable directly to the governing principles for the nation. This is a global crisis of liberalism, my friends--it is not just economy, it is all of it: cultural, spiritual, moral and ideological. It simply doesn't work and the last hope today is with this guy in Kremlin and his buddies to figure it out how to land this crazy world softly, with as little damage as possible. China may help, but will she? I guess we'll see.