State Department: No 'Gentleman's Agreement' Between US, Russia On Expired Nuclear Treaty

"A senior US State Department official has flatly rejected suggestions that Washington and Moscow are informally continuing to observe the limits of the now-expired, nuclear-weapon-limiting New START treaty, saying there is no "gentlemen's agreement" in place."

""I know of no such agreement," Assistant Secretary of State Christopher Yeaw said on February 17 at the Hudson Institute when asked whether the two sides were quietly adhering to New START's caps despite the treaty's expiration."

"Yeaw described those omissions as fundamental flaws. "Only two blocks out of six were captured by treaty," he said, outlining a matrix of US, Russian, and Chinese strategic and theater nuclear forces. With China unconstrained and Russia modernizing its nonstrategic arsenal, he argued, the treaty framework had become outdated. Russia had already stepped back from full implementation before expiration, Yeaw said, adding that Washington is now free to adjust its posture as needed. "We are no longer bound by New START treaty limits," he said, noting that any future force decisions rest with the president and the Pentagon."

The United States rejects suggestions that Washington and Moscow are informally observing New START limits and denies any "gentlemen's agreement." New START, signed in 2010, capped deployed US and Russian strategic warheads at 1,550 each and expired on February 5. The US has allowed the treaty to lapse while pursuing a broader trilateral framework that would include China. The treaty excluded nonstrategic (theater) nuclear weapons and imposed no limits on China, creating gaps. Russia reduced full implementation before expiration. The US states it is free to adjust its posture and has also alleged China conducted a yield-producing nuclear test.

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