Sign up for our daily briefing
Make your busy days simpler with Axios AM/PM. Catch up on what's new and why it matters in just 5 minutes.
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Catch up on coronavirus stories and special reports, curated by Mike Allen everyday
Denver news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Denver
Des Moines news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Des Moines
Minneapolis-St. Paul news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Twin Cities
Tampa Bay news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Tampa Bay
Charlotte news in your inbox
Catch up on the most important stories affecting your hometown with Axios Charlotte
U.K. Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson. Photo: Rick Findler, WPA Pool/Getty Images
British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson told the Financial Times that the U.K. would stand by President Trump's decision to withdraw from a landmark nuclear treaty with Russia, claiming that the Kremlin has made a "mockery" of the deal with repeated violations.
Why it matters: Prime Minister Theresa May and her cabinet have taken a hard line against Russia ever since the poisoning of former spy Sergei Skripal in Salisbury, England, an attack British intelligence claims was likely ordered at the highest levels of the Russian government. Williamson said the U.K. would like to see the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty preserved, but that both parties need to meet the INF's requirements in order for it to be effective.