US President Donald Trump rejected the New START nuclear disarmament treaty between Russia and the US, calling it a "badly negotiated agreement", and called on Washington nuclear experts to begin building a completely new treaty.
The New START Strategic Arms Control Treaty officially expired on February 5, raising concerns in Moscow as well as the United Nations. On the same day, Axios reported that US and Russian officials agreed to discuss "updating" this treaty on the sidelines of Ukraine peace talks in Abu Dhabi.
Instead of renewing New START... we should let our nuclear experts work on a new, improved and modernized treaty that can last long in the future," Trump wrote on the social network Truth Social on February 5, while accusing the current treaty of being "seriously violated".
Immediately after President Trump's statement, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said that the US plans to discuss a new treaty with Russia. She also denied information that Moscow and Washington have reached any temporary agreement regarding the continued compliance with the terms of the expired treaty.
New START was signed in 2010, stipulating the limit on the number of strategic nuclear warheads and launchers to be deployed, and establishing a monitoring mechanism for the nuclear arsenal of both countries. Initially, the treaty was scheduled to expire in 2021, then was extended for another 5 years.
In 2023, Russia suspended the verification mechanisms of the treaty, citing Ukrainian attacks on members of Russia's nuclear deterrent forces, as well as accusations of deeper Western intervention.
However, so far there have been no reports showing any party violating the arms limits stipulated in the treaty.
Earlier on February 5, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia had proposed to continue to comply with the terms of the treaty for another year, but the initiative "has not received a response".
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also called on Russia and the US to negotiate a successor framework, warning that the risk of nuclear conflict is at its "highest" level in decades.
Previously, President Trump had declared his desire for a "better" agreement with the participation of China as well. However, on the same day, Mr. Peskov said that Beijing considers participating in the negotiation of a new treaty "unnecessary", because China's nuclear arsenal is not commensurate with Russia and the US.
We respect this position," Mr. Peskov added.
