The Russian asset in the White House has proven his worth to Putin by doing yet another thing Russia wanted out of him, suspending U.S. participation in the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. That's the kind of international power structure destabilization Russia, and increasingly China, have been looking for out of Trump.
The White House issued a statement Friday morning saying it "will suspend its obligations under the" Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with Russia on Saturday, "and begin the process of withdrawing from the INF Treaty." Trump is justifying the action "in response to the significant risks to Euro-Atlantic security posed by Russia's covert testing, production, and fielding of 9M729 ground-launched cruise missile systems. Allies fully support this action."
Allies likely do not fully support this action. Trump began threatening this withdrawal last fall and allies reacted with strong concern. Heiko Maas, Germany's foreign minister, said "what is at stake is no more and no less than humankind's survival," and that Germany was "working to persuade the United States not to hastily withdraw from the INF Treaty. We don't want Europe to become the scene of a debate on a nuclear arms build up." High Representative and Vice-President of the European Union Federica Mogherini is "extremely worried." A statement from France's Foreign Ministry said that President Macron has conveyed to Trump the "importance France ascribes to this treaty, in particular for European security and our strategic stability," and "We call on all the parties to avoid any hasty unilateral decisions, which would be regrettable."
Here at home, Sen. Jim Risch (R-ID)—the most feeble-minded toady ever to chair the Senate Foreign Relations Committee—is all aboard with Trump, saying "I support the withdrawal of the US from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty." His Democratic counterpart, ranking member Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ), in contrast, says "President Trump clearly lacks an appreciation or understating of the importance of arms control treaties and today's withdrawal is yet another geostrategic gift to Vladimir Putin."
This is not Trump being tough on Putin, as the White House would like to spin it. It's Trump giving the big old gift of destabilizing the balance of power in Europe.