Moscow slams US remarks on suspension of New START as untenable

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
17 Mar 2023 09:41

This comes shortly after the US said Russia's suspension of the New START nuclear arms control treaty is "legally invalid".

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov speaks at the UN offices in Geneva. (AFP)

The State Department said, on Wednesday, that Russia's suspension of the New START nuclear arms control treaty is "legally invalid", adding that Moscow is still bound by its obligations under the accord.

In response, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said on Friday that the US' statements are untenable.

"We consider such misinformation as an element of Washington's current political propaganda campaign, the purpose of which is to force Russia to restore the START regime and preserve the possibility for the United States to get unhindered access to our strategic arsenal," the Kommersant newspaper quoted Ryabkov as saying.

Russia repeatedly presented all necessary legal justifications in detail, the diplomat said, adding that for a variety of reasons, the Russian side concluded that Washington had significantly violated the New START and suspended its participation in full accordance with the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties.

"If the United States is really interested in the resumption of the New START and, in general, cooperation with us in the field of arms control, then it should first give up empty fantasies about inflicting a 'strategic defeat' on Russia and recognize that there is no alternative to taking into account Russian interests in the field of security," Ryabkov added.

Last month, in a state-of-the-nation address, Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed that Russia was suspending participation in the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.

He described NATO's demand that Russia returns to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), which includes providing access to nuclear sites for inspections, as "absurd".

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken considered Russia's decision to suspend a nuclear arms reduction treaty with the US, New START, was "deeply unfortunate and irresponsible" but said Washington remained willing to talk about the issue.

NATO chief and the EU's top diplomat Jens Stoltenberg warned that Russia's suspension of the New START treaty with the United States marked the end of Europe's post-Cold War arms control architecture.