As the only remaining arms agreement, the New Start Treaty obliges the USA and Russia to adopt nuclear disarmament. However, the consequences of the Ukraine war are increasingly straining relations between the countries: Washington is accusing Moscow of now preventing contractual control appointments.
The US has accused Russia of failing to comply with the New Start nuclear weapons control treaty. The US State Department accused the Moscow government of suspending inspections and canceling planned arms control talks. Washington, on the other hand, does not accuse Moscow of having increased the number of nuclear warheads beyond the permissible upper limit.
“Russia is not fulfilling its obligations under the New Start Treaty to allow inspection activities on its territory,” the US State Department said. This threatens the “feasibility of US-Russian nuclear weapons control”. Russia must again allow inspections in the country and return to the bilateral arms control talks agreed in New Start.
The New Start Treaty, signed in 2010, is the only remaining nuclear disarmament agreement between the United States and Russia. It obliges both countries to reduce their nuclear warheads to a maximum of 1,550 each. Last November, amid the Ukraine war, Russia called off planned arms control talks with the United States. The Russian Foreign Ministry justified the decision with “hostility” from the United States.
Moscow announced in August that it would suspend US inspections of its military sites as part of New Start. The Russian government has accused the US of obstructing Russian inspectors, which the government in Washington denies. The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine has pushed relations between Washington and Moscow to a new low.
