"The INF Treaty on nuclear disarmament is extremely important for stability and peace in Europe and beyond. Any withdrawal from the treaty would lead to an arms race, which must be avoided. Europe is interested in reduced tensions between the United States and Russia so that they did not return to the Cold War level," Austrian Government spokesman Peter Launsky-Tieffenthal said.
READ MORE: Professor Warns New 'Nuclear Iron Curtain' May Be Created if INF Treaty Scrapped
Austria is clearly committed to disarmament and reducing tensions at the negotiating table, he added.
The INF treaty was signed between the Soviet Union and the United States in December 1987 and required the parties to destroy their ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of between 500 and 5,500 kilometers (from 311 to 3,317 miles). The United States and Russia have repeatedly accused each other of violating the treaty.