MOSCOW, April 12. /TASS/. Speculations about the future of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) or a replacement for it make no sense at this point, Vladimir Yermakov, director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Non-Proliferation and Arms Control Department, said in an interview with TASS.
"As for the future of New START or a replacement for it, such speculations currently make as little sense as discussions about the prospects of using political and diplomatic means to resolve other issues that have piled up in the field of strategic stability. The US remains unprepared for comprehensive efforts to reduce the level of conflict between the two largest nuclear powers," he pointed out.
"This is why Washington should not have any illusions about any new agreements in the field of arms control. We don’t see it as a tragedy and we are prepared for any developments," Yermakov added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on February 21, 2023, that Moscow was suspending its participation in New START but was not withdrawing from it. The head of state emphasized that before resuming discussions about further activities under the treaty, Russia needed to understand how the arsenals of NATO’s other nuclear-weapons countries, the UK and France, would be taken into account along with US capacities. Putin signed a law suspending Russia’s participation in the treaty on February 28.