DailyExpertNews
—
Russia is violating an important nuclear arms control agreement with the United States and continues to refuse to allow inspections of its nuclear facilities, a State Department spokesman said Tuesday.
“Russia is failing to fulfill its obligation under the New START treaty to facilitate inspection activities on its territory. 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,” the spokesman said in a statement.
“Russia has also failed to comply with the obligation of the New START treaty to convene a session of the Bilateral Consultative Commission in accordance with the timeline mandated by the treaty,” the spokesman added.
The US announcement is likely to increase tensions between the two countries as Moscow continues its war against Ukraine. The rattle of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s nuclear saber during the war has alarmed the US and its allies.
In December, Putin warned of the “increasing” threat of nuclear war, and this month Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, threatened that Russia’s losing the war “could provoke the outbreak of nuclear war”.
“Nuclear powers do not lose major conflicts on which their fate depends,” Medvedev wrote in a Telegram post. “This should be clear to everyone. Even for a Western politician who has retained at least a trace of intelligence.”
And while a US intelligence agency suggested in November that Russian military officials were discussing under what circumstances Russia would use a tactical nuclear weapon in Ukraine, the US has not seen any evidence that Putin has decided to take the drastic step of using one, officials said. to DailyExpertNews.
Under the New START treaty — the only agreement left to regulate the world’s two largest nuclear arsenals — Washington and Moscow are allowed to inspect each other’s weapons sites, but inspections have been halted since 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
A session of the Bilateral Consultative Commission on the treaty was due to meet in Egypt at the end of November, but was abruptly called off. The US has blamed Russia for this delay, with a State Department spokesman saying the decision was made “unilaterally” by Russia.
The treaty sets limits on the number of deployed intercontinental nuclear weapons that both the US and Russia can have. It was last extended for five years in early 2021, meaning the two sides should soon start negotiating a new arms control deal.
The State Department says Russia can return to full compliance if they “allow inspection activity on its territory, just as it did for years under the New START treaty” and also schedule a session of the commission.
“Russia has a clear path to return to full compliance. All Russia has to do is allow inspection activities on its territory, as it did for years under the New START treaty, and meet in a session of the Bilateral Consultative Commission,” the spokesman said. “Nothing prevents Russian inspectors from traveling to the United States and conducting inspections.”
According to the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, Russia has approximately 5,977 nuclear warheads, of which 1,588 have been deployed. The US has 5,550 warheads, including 3,800 active warheads, according to the Center.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday that the last remaining portion of the bilateral nuclear arms control treaty with the United States could expire in three years without replacement.
Asked if Moscow could imagine not having a nuclear arms control deal between the two nations when the extension of the 2011 New START treaty expires after 2026, Ryabkov told Russia’s state news agency RIA Novosti on Monday: “This is a very possible scenario. ”
