Senior Policy Director Alexandra Bell spoke with The Associated Press about the U.S. withdrawal from the Open Skies Treaty.
Alexandra Bell, a former State Department official and currently the senior policy director at the nonpartisan nonprofit Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, said withdrawal from Open Skies will rub allies the wrong way.
“I absolutely cannot see a single upside to abandoning this treaty against the advice and wishes of our allies, other than for the people who never liked this treaty and don’t like the idea of the transparency and openness the treaty provides,” Bell said.
The U.S. has been working on a proposal to share with partners and allies imagery the U.S. would have shared from its Open Skies flights, said senior administration officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to explain Trump’s decision.
Bell noted the concept had been developed during the Eisenhower administration, advanced by President George H.W. Bush and brought into force during the administration of George W. Bush.
“It’s a Republican legacy treaty,” she said. Read more
