The May 19 vote to exit from the Open Skies Treaty must still be endorsed by the upper house of parliament as State Duma is the lower house of parliament.
The decision has to also be signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin to take effect.
According to the website of Radio Dree Europe, the Open Skies Treaty was signed in 1992 and entered into force in 2002, allowing its 34 members to conduct short-notice, unarmed observation and surveillance flights over one another's territories to collect data on military forces and activities. More than 1,500 flights have taken place under the agreement.
The United States formally withdrew on November 22, 2020, from the arms-control and verification agreement that Washington repeatedly said Moscow "flagrantly violated," six months after giving notice of the pending exit.
The US move was another blow to the system of international arms control that former US President Donald Trump had repeatedly scorned, complaining that Washington was being either deceived or unfairly restrained in its military capabilities.
KI/PR