Russia Says US Silent on New START as Treaty Set to Expire

Russia said on Tuesday that the US still hasn’t responded to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposal regarding the New START, the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty between the two powers, which is set to expire on Thursday, February 5.

New START doesn’t have a built-in extension, but Putin has offered a mutual agreement to maintain the treaty’s limits for a year to give room for diplomacy to negotiate a replacement.

“The initiative put forward by President Putin remains on the table. We have not yet received any response from the Americans regarding this proposal,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

New START caps the number of nuclear warheads either side can deploy at 1,550 and also limits the deployment of delivery systems. Arms control experts have warned that the expiration of the treaty without a replacement or an agreement on maintaining its limits will likely lead to an increase in the deployment of nuclear weapons and spark a new arms race.

Russia is also warning that the expiration of New START will make the world a more dangerous place. “Indeed, time is running out, like shrunken leather. In just a few days, the world will likely find itself in a more hazardous position than before,” Peskov said.

“For the first time ever, the United States and the Russian Federation — the two countries with the world’s largest nuclear arsenals — will be left without a fundamental document to limit their capabilities and ensure oversight. We believe this is highly concerning,” the Russian spokesman added.

Polling shows that American voters overwhelmingly support the idea of Trump accepting Putin’s offer to maintain the New START limits and want the US and Russia to negotiate a new deal that either maintains those restrictions or results in a reduction of nuclear weapons.