February 12, 2026 at 1:56 PM
Russia will uphold nuclear weapons limits of expired treaty, foreign minister says
To address the stated concerns in Moscow and Washington, a multilateral pact would be required, a process that experts say could be exceedingly tricky.
A Russian RS-24 Yars nuclear missile system (NATO reporting name: SS-29) arrives during rehearsals for a military parade in Moscow's Red Square on May 5, 2024. (Contributor/Getty Images)BERLIN — Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the country’s parliament that Moscow will continue adhering to the numerical limits of the expired New START nuclear weapons limitation treaty, provided Washington does the same.Speaking before the State Duma on Feb. 11, he said: “Our stance is that the moratorium declared by the president is still active, but only if the United States does not surpass the established limits.”The statement comes less than a week after the treaty expired on Feb.
5, leaving the world’s two largest nuclear arsenals without binding restrictions for the first time in more than half a century. New START, which capped deployed strategic warheads at 1,550 on each side, was signed in 2010 and extended for five years by Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin in 2021.President Donald Trump rejected Putin’s proposal for a voluntary one-year extension of the treaty limits, calling New START “a poorly negotiated agreement” and saying he wanted to negotiate a modernized replacement that would include China. Beijing has consistently rejected joining trilateral arms control talks, arguing