Putin Proposes Extending Russia-U.S. Nuclear Deal by One Year

While Russia has offered to extend the New START Treaty, the U.S. has not accepted the extension. (Wikimedia Commons)

In 2011, the United States and Russia agreed to a deal known as the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) to reduce the development of their nuclear arsenals. Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed on October 20 that they extend this treaty by one year. 

Moscow previously offered to extend the treaty by five years. The U.S. government rejected this extension and  countered that any extension would have to include a one-year agreement to freeze the development of all nuclear arsenal components, including those not included in the New START Treaty. 

New START limits both the United States and Russia to 1,550 strategic warheads and 700 delivery systems. The end of this treaty would lift the restraints on deploying nuclear warheads as well as the means of transporting them, such as missiles and bombers. The treaty is currently set to expire in February 2021. 

The New START treaty involves a clause that allows it to be extended for five years with the agreement of both the Russian and the U.S. presidents without ratification by the Senate. Joe Biden, the Democratic nominee for president, has indicated support for the five-year plan, and Putin is also amenable to an extension. 

President Donald Trump, however, has expressed resistance to this idea and asked that China, a rising nuclear power, agree to the treaty as well before he can give his approval. China has not yet expressed any interest in engaging in the New START treaty and has refused to take part in negotiations. 

The Trump Administration’s main concern with the extension of the treaty lies in that it does not put a freeze on all types of nuclear warheads, allowing Russia to develop weapons that are not covered by New START.

Putin, who initially proposed the one-year extension, indicated his offer as a gesture of good-will towards the United States and an affirmation of Russia’s dedication to managing strategic stability. He further implied that the one-year extension could mean brokering a deal with a White House that is more amenable to the treaty if Biden becomes president. 

Although initially resistant to the idea of a one-year proposal, the U.S. State Department has begun to express its approval for the plan, provided that there is a mutual agreement that there will be a freeze on all warheads while negotiations are underway. 

State Department official Megan Ortagus stated, “We appreciate the Russian Federation’s willingness to make progress on the issue of nuclear arms control. The United States is prepared to meet immediately to finalize a verifiable agreement. We expect Russia to empower its diplomats to do the same.”