On Wednesday, Russia’s State Duma unanimously voted to suspend participation in the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) with the US, citing numerous violations by Washington.
“The collective West deliberately chose to worsen relations with Russia,” State Duma Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Leonid Slutsky emphasised, adding that it cannot be “business as usual with the US and the West” with respect to arms control — calling it “inseparable from geopolitics.”
WATCH: #BNNRussia Reports.#Russia's State #Duma unanimously passes a law suspending Moscow's participation in the New START Treaty on Wednesday following #Putin's announcement of the suspension on Tuesday.#NewSTARTTreaty #Politics pic.twitter.com/FelOfemBn8
— Gurbaksh Singh Chahal (@gchahal) February 22, 2023
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov noted that the US’ “extremely escalatory policy towards Russia,” especially Washington’s increasing involvement as a party” to the Ukraine conflict makes it difficult to participate in the treaty.
In a similar vein, State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin remarked that the law “will largely contribute to ensuring [Russia’s] security.”
Overview
During his State of the Union address on Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed that the nuclear treaty signed between Russia and the US was currently suspended, as allowing American officials to conduct inspections of Russia’s military facilities would be like a “theatre of the absurd.”
He further emphasised that resuming any discussions regarding the treaty would be contingent on including the nuclear arsenals of France and the UK as well, after which, he submitted the relevant documents to the parliament.
Russia Can Reverse Treaty’s Suspension
Hours after Putin’s declaration, the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russia “will take a prudent approach and will continue to strictly comply with the quantitative restrictions stipulated in the treaty” to maintain stability.
“The decision to suspend the New START Treaty can be reversed if Washington demonstrates the political will and takes honest efforts towards general de-escalation and the creation of conditions for resuming the comprehensive operation of the treaty and, consequently, its survival,” it stated, adding that Moscow was convinced that the treaty’s potential to strengthen security and maintain stability was “far from exhausted.”
❗️The Russian Federation found itself in a radically new security environment resulting from Washington’s extreme hostility & efforts to stir up confrontation.
— MFA Russia 🇷🇺 (@mfa_russia) February 22, 2023
☝️It is no longer possible to maintain business as usual with the US & the West in general.
🔗 https://t.co/abibUBbTre pic.twitter.com/ueTaAxXToo
Ryabkov remained non-committal over resuming dialogue with the US, but claimed to “keep a close eye on what policy London and Paris adopt.”
“It’s impossible to ignore the British and French capabilities, so they will now be considered together with the US’ potential as a single force targeted against Russia,” he added.
He further pointed out that it is possible that the US may withdraw from the New START treaty, as “Washington’s behaviour does not inspire optimism.”
US “Ready” for Talks with Russia
Following Putin’s announcement of suspending the New START nuclear arms treaty with the US on Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called it “deeply unfortunate and irresponsible,” adding that Washington will watch Moscow’s actions “closely.”
However, he maintained that the US remained “ready to talk about strategic arms limitations at any time with Russia irrespective of anything else going on in the world or in [the countries’] relationship.”