Overview
- The treaty lapsed on February 5, removing legally binding caps on deployed strategic warheads and ending on-site verification for the first time in more than half a century.
- The Kremlin said Russia is no longer bound by New START, voiced regret, and reiterated readiness for talks after proposing a one-year voluntary observance that received no formal U.S. response.
- President Donald Trump rejected maintaining the pact’s limits and called for a new, modernized agreement that includes China, a stance reinforced by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and arms-control envoy Thomas DiNanno.
- China ruled out joining disarmament negotiations at this stage and urged Washington to resume nuclear dialogue with Moscow, while Russia argued any new framework should also consider British and French arsenals.
- The United States and Russia announced a resumption of direct military-to-military contacts, as the UN warned the risk of nuclear use is at a decades-high and experts cautioned both sides could expand deployments without constraints.