Russian President Putin suspends participation in New START with US.

Russian
President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday announced Russia is suspending its
participation in the last remaining major nuclear-arms-control treaty or the
New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START with the United States.
Putin
made the declaration in his much-delayed annual state of the nation address to
Russia's National Assembly on Tuesday alleging the United States was turning
the war into a global conflict.
“I am forced
to announce today that Russia is suspending its participation in the strategic
offensive arms treaty,” the Russian President stated.
The
Russian foreign ministry further said, it blames the US for their decision
accusing Washington of being non-compliance with its provisions and trying to
undermine Russia’s national security.
"There
is every reason to state that U.S. policy is aimed at undermining Russia's
national security, which directly contradicts the fundamental principles and
understandings enshrined in the preamble of the treaty," it said.
So what
is the NEW START TREATY?
The New
Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty or New START was signed back in 2010 by then-U.S.
president Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, the treaty
restricts the number of strategic nuclear warheads that both the countries can
deploy.
The
treaty came into force in the very next year it was signed i.e., on February 5,
2011 and was extended for five more years in 2021 after U.S. President Joe
Biden took office. The treaty further allows both the countries’ inspectors to
ensure both sides are complying with the treaty.
Under the
agreement, both the countries are limited to deploy not more than 1550
strategic nuclear warheads and 700 long-range missiles such as intercontinental
ballistic missiles and submarine-launched ballistic missiles and heavy bombers
equipped for nuclear armaments.
The
treaty provides 18 on-site inspections of strategic nuclear weapons per year
for U.S and Russian inspection teams to ensure one of the two has not breached
the treaty’s limits. However, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the inspections have
been halted since 2020.
According
to the President’s speech, Russia is not withdrawing from the pact but
suspending their participation.
He said
that the US wants to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia and is trying to get
their nuclear facilities.
According
to a senior defence official, Russia will abide to the agreed limits on nuclear
missiles and also keep informing the US about its deployments.
President
Joe Biden said Vladimir Putin’s decision is a big mistake and very responsible.
While Nato and other nuclear powers Britain and France criticised Putin’s
decision.
Source-
Reuters
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