Putin proposes one-year extension of New START arms control treaty with US

The Russian president said it would be ‘extremely sad’ if the accord expired and was not replaced by another similar agreement

Tensions have raged for months over the fate of New START, which caps the number of nuclear warheads held by Washington and Moscow

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Russian President Vladimir Putin said it would be “extremely sad” if the treaty expired and was not replaced by another similar agreement. Photo: Reuters

Published: 10:48pm, 16 Oct 2020Updated: 12:32am, 17 Oct 2020

President Vladimir Putin on Friday proposed that Moscow and Washington extend for a year and without any conditions the last major nuclear arms reduction accord between Russia and the United States.

The New START deal was signed in April 2010 but went into force in February 2011. It lasts for 10 years but with a possible extension.

“I have a proposal – which is to extend the current agreement without any preconditions at least for one year to have an opportunity to conduct substantial negotiations,” Putin said at a meeting of his security council, according to a Kremlin statement.

At the meeting Putin asked Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to “formulate our position to try and get at least some sort of coherent answer from them in the nearest future”.

A Zircon hypersonic cruise missile is launched from the Russian guided missile frigate Admiral Gorshkov during a test in the White Sea. Photo: Russian Defence Ministry via Reuters

Tensions have raged for months over the fate of New START, which caps the number of nuclear warheads held by Washington and Moscow and expires on February 5, 2021.