Washington Seeks New Path On Nuclear Arms As Last Cold War Treaty With Russia Expires

"The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), the final remaining bilateral agreement limiting US and Russian nuclear arsenals, expired on February 5, closing a chapter that began in the Cold War and survived its end. With no successor treaty in place, the world's two largest nuclear powers -- which together possess roughly 90 percent of global nuclear warheads -- now face one another without legally binding limits, inspections, or verification regimes."

"US officials, however, argue the treaty's expiration reflects reality rather than rupture. "Today, the ⁠United States faces threats from multiple nuclear powers. In short, a bilateral treaty ⁠with ‌only one nuclear power is simply inappropriate in 2026 and going forward," Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Thomas DiNanno told delegates at the Disarmament Conference ⁠in Geneva on February 6."

""There is an understanding, and this was also discussed in Abu Dhabi, that both sides will act responsibly and will recognize the need to start negotiations on this issue as soon as possible," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in reference to talks US officials had with Russian military contacts in the Middle East on February 6. At the heart of the matter, according to US officials, is geopolitical reality: There are no longer only two nuclear superpowers that should be bound by such treaties."

The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) expired on February 5, ending the last bilateral legally binding limits between the United States and Russia. The two countries collectively hold roughly 90 percent of global nuclear warheads and now lack treaty-based ceilings, inspections, and verification mechanisms. Arms control advocates warn the lapse could accelerate intensifying nuclear competition involving China as well as the US and Russia. US officials characterize the expiration as reflecting a changed geopolitical reality, arguing a bilateral treaty exclusively between two states is inappropriate given multiple nuclear powers. Russia had proposed a voluntary one-year extension to negotiate a successor.

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