US accuses Russia of violating New START nuclear treaty
- Washington says Moscow is refusing to allow inspection activities on its territory
- The deal is the last major pillar of post-Cold War nuclear arms control between the two countries
The US on Tuesday accused Russia of violating the New START Treaty, the last major pillar of post-Cold War nuclear arms control between the two countries, saying Moscow was refusing to allow inspection activities on its territory.
The treaty came into force in 2011 and was extended in 2021 for five more years. It caps the number of strategic nuclear warheads that the United States and Russia can deploy, and the deployment of land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them.
The two countries, which during the Cold War were constrained by a tangle of arms control agreements, still account together for about 90 per cent of the world’s nuclear warheads.
Washington has been keen to preserve the treaty but ties with Moscow are the worst in decades over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, an element that could complicate attempts by US President Joe Biden’s administration to maintain and reach a follow-on agreement.
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“Russia’s refusal to facilitate inspection activities prevents the United States from exercising important rights under the treaty and threatens the viability of US-Russian nuclear arms control,” a State Department spokesperson said in emailed comments.
