Russia Says It Would Be Risky To Allow Nuclear Treaty With US To Lapse

Russia Says It Would Be Risky To Allow Nuclear Treaty With US To Lapse

The Kremlin warned Tuesday that allowing the nuclear treaty with the United States to expire next February would pose significant risks to international security.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Russia would need to implement unspecified measures if the United States rejected President Vladimir Putin's Monday proposal that both nations continue adhering to the New START treaty's limitations on deployed strategic nuclear weapons for another year.

The New START agreement, the final nuclear treaty between the two powers, expires February 5, and Peskov indicated that negotiating a replacement treaty before the deadline would be "virtually impossible" - explaining Putin's suggestion to maintain the treaty's established nuclear warhead limitations.

"Time is rapidly diminishing, and we are approaching a situation where we could be left without any bilateral agreements governing strategic stability and security, which naturally presents considerable global dangers," Peskov stated.

He confirmed that Putin's initiative had not been previously discussed with US President Donald Trump.

The White House responded Monday that Putin's proposal appeared "pretty good," and that Trump would address the matter.

Maintaining the treaty's limitations would allow both nations to avoid - or at least delay - a costly arms race that nuclear experts predict would likely follow if New START were to completely lapse.

The two presidents could present this as a positive diplomatic achievement following months of phone conversations and an August summit in Alaska that failed to produce progress on ending Russia's conflict in Ukraine.

Putin clarified Monday that Russia would extend its compliance with the treaty's limitations only if America reciprocated.

"If they are not complied with on the other side, then, of course, measures will have to be taken," Peskov explained, without specifying what actions Russia might subsequently implement.

He added that the timing of the next Putin-Trump communication remains unclear.

Russia and the United States possess by far the world's largest nuclear arsenals. The New START treaty caps deployed strategic nuclear warheads at 1,550 and delivery vehicles - including missiles, submarines and bomber aircraft - at 700 for each country.

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