Russia has reportedly agreed to abide by the limits of a nuclear weapons treaty it signed with the US years ago after the deal expired last week – as long as Washington does the same.
The expiration of the New START treaty, which took place on February 5, leaves the countries with the two largest nuclear arsenals without restrictions for the first time in more than half a century, The Associated Press reported. The expiration of the deadline has fueled fears of a possible unbridled nuclear arms race.
In September, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia would stick to the nuclear weapons deal for another year after its expiration date, as long as the U.S. followed suit, the AP reported. However, President Donald Trump has said he wanted China to be part of a new pact, something Beijing has rejected, according to the AP.
“Rather than expanding ‘NEW START’ (a poorly negotiated United States deal that, apart from anything else, is being grossly violated), we should let our nuclear experts work on a new, improved, and modernized Treaty that can last well into the future,” Trump wrote. Truth Social upon expiry of the treaty.
THE WORLD BEGINS AN UNKNOWN ERA AS THE US-RUSSIA NUCLEAR TREATY EXPIRES, OPENS DOOR TO THE FASTEST ARMS MATCH IN DECADES
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in Anchorage, Ala. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov spoke to lawmakers about the treaty, saying Moscow would “act in a responsible and balanced manner based on an analysis of U.S. military policy,” the AP reported.
Lavrov added that “we have reason to believe that the United States is in no hurry to give up these limits and that they will be observed in the near future.”
This photo, taken from a video distributed by the Press Service of the Russian Ministry of Defense on December 9, 2020, shows a missile launch as part of an intercontinental ballistic missile test on the ground at the Plesetsk facility in Russia. (Press service of the Russian Ministry of Defense via AP, File)
“We will keep a close eye on how things actually unfold,” Lavrov said. “If the intention of our American colleagues to cooperate in this area in some way is confirmed, we will actively work on a new agreement and consider the issues that have been left out of the strategic stability agreements.”
TRUMP CALLS ON NUCLEAR EXPERTS TO WORK ON ‘NEW, IMPROVED AND MODERNIZED TREATY’
The New START Treaty was signed in 2010 by then-President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, and came into effect on February 5, 2011.
The treaty gave the US and Russia until February 5, 2018 to comply with central restrictions on strategic offensive weapons. The treaty limits each side to 700 deployed ICBMs, SLBMs, and nuclear-capable heavy bombers; 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads; and 800 deployed and non-deployed launchers and bombers. The parties were then obliged to maintain the borders as long as the treaty remained in force, which they did until last week.
President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands during a press conference after meeting to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Ala., August 15, 2025. (Kevin Lamarque/Reuters)
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The expiration of the treaty comes on the heels of a meeting between American and Russian officials in Abu Dhabi. Axios previously reported this that the two countries were nearing an agreement to adhere to the treaty for at least six months after its expiry. The outlet added that negotiations on a new deal would take place during the six-month period.
