The U.S. government will reportedly withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty, a major international defense accord that allows nations to fly over each other's territories. 

According to the Associated Press, the Trump administration notified the members of the treaty its intent to pull out of the pact, citing that Russia has violated it. 

The treaty, which was signed in 1992 and came into force in 2002, involves over 30 countries. It allows Russia and most NATO members to conduct surveillance flights over each other’s territories to verify troop and arms deployments.

President Trump reportedly said that photos acquired from the flights under the treaty could be obtained swiftly from commercial satellites with lower costs.

The report said that the withdrawal is expected to strain Washington's relations with Moscow and anger the U.S.' European allies and some members of U.S. Congress.