Russia will honor new START limits if US does the same: Gatilov
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Russia is willing to uphold New START nuclear limits after 2026—but only if the U.S. does the same, says Russia's UN envoy Gennady Gatilov.
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Russian ambassador Gennady Gatilov speaks at the opening of the 49th session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland on February 28, 2022. (AP)
Russia is ready to adhere to the quantitative limits of the New START nuclear arms treaty beyond its expiration in 2026—but only if the United States does the same, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, Gennady Gatilov, said.
“The proposal by President Vladimir Putin to continue observing the limits under New START after February 5, 2026, remains valid,” Gatilov told RIA Novosti. “Naturally, we will do so only on the basis of reciprocity from the U.S. side.”
Russia prioritizes nuclear war prevention at 2026 UN disarmament meet
Preventing nuclear war and averting an arms race in outer space will be top priorities for Russia at the upcoming United Nations Conference on Disarmament, Russian envoy Gennady Gatilov said in an interview with RIA Novosti.
"We intend to pay special attention to the CD agenda items related to the prevention of nuclear war, including all related issues, and the prevention of an arms race in space," said Gatilov, Russia’s Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva.
The envoy explained that Russia would "Continue to use the CD platform to advance the principle that effective dialogue on arms control, disarmament, and nonproliferation is only possible under conditions of mutual consideration of interests and based on the principle of equal and indivisible security for all."
The next session of the UN Conference on Disarmament is scheduled to open in Geneva in January 2026.
Efforts to exclude Russia from new security system will fail
Attempts to establish a new international security framework without Russia, particularly one that opposes its interests, are bound to fail, Gatilov expressed.
He emphasized that "Any effort to create a security system that excludes Russia, especially one targeting our national interests, is doomed from the outset," adding that many European nations continue to act "aggressively," increasing tensions with Russia and "pumping the Kiev regime with weapons, often sacrificing their own economic development and, consequently, the prosperity of their own nations."
"In such conditions, security dialogue with European states is simply impossible," he concluded.
