The US has decided to break an agreement banning the weapon because they believe Russia has already created and deployed the missiles in range of NATO targets.
An official said: “The idea here is we need to send a message to the Russians that they will pay a military price for violation of this treaty.”
The US has accused Russia of breaking the Cold War agreement signed by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev at the White House in 1987.
Vladimir Putin has deliberately deployed the prohibited weapons to threaten NATO and American facilities, US military claimed earlier this year.
While American intelligence has pointed to Moscow secretly abandoning the agreement since at least 2012.
Republicans responded to the revelation by pressuring President Barrack Obama to confront Putin over the betrayal.
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) bans short and intermediate-range ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with a range of 310-3,420 miles.
The Kremlin responded by calling the claims “fake news” after it was reported that they had already built two battalions of banned cruise missiles.
Moscow refused demands to admit violating the treaty as officials denied any wrongdoing.
Trump’s response is designed to demonstrate America’s military power and force Russia to back down.
An official said: “We are posturing ourselves to live in a post-INF world… if that is the world the Russians want.”
Speaking at a NATO conference US Defence Secretary James Mattis revealed efforts to get Russia to back down.
He said: “We have a firm belief, now, over several years, that the Russians have violated the INF. And our effort is to bring Russia back into compliance.”
A $700billion (£530billion) defence budget passed by the US Senate included $58million (£43million) to counter Russia’s breaking of the INF.
The US will not violate the treaty until it tests the missile.
The news came after President Trump demanded Putin do more to rein in North Korea and prevent World War 3.
The US President said China is helping to deal with Kim Jong-un’s regime, but extra assistance from the Russians would “make the problem go away a lot faster”.
Speaking shortly before his arrival in Hanoi, Trump described his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping as “a good man” who “wants to do right” when it comes to dealing with the nuclear-armed rogue state.
But the American leader said although he had a good relationship with Putin, Russia “could really help” in North Korea.
He said: “We have a big problem with North Korea and China is helping us.
“If Russia helped us in addition to China that problem would go away a lot faster.”