The completed SALT II Agreement was signed by President Carter and Secretary-General Brezhnev in Vienna on 18 June 1979. President Carter transmitted it to the Senate on 22 June 1979 for its advice and consent to ratification. But when the USSR invaded Afghanistan in December 1979, President Carter requested the majority leader of the Senate to postpone a decision indefinitely. In the same month, the NATO decided on the so-called ‘twin-track’ in order to counter the Soviet non-strategic threat (SS-20 missiles) by announcing the deployment of Pershing II missiles in the European theatre. Although the SALT II Treaty never entered into force, both parties continued to emphasize their intent to adhere to its terms. However, on 26 May 1986, US President Reagan characterized SALT II as ‘flawed’ because it did not properly address the threat posed by Soviet nuclear forces.The Reagan Administration claimed two kinds of Soviet violations of the SALT II Treaty. The first allegation concerned the development of more than one new type of ballistic missile. The second claim of a Soviet violation related to a provision that telemetry during missile tests by either side should not be unduly encoded.