Arya News - The United States and Russia are relying on a “handshake” to replace an expired nuclear arms treaty, officials have said.
The United States and Russia are relying on a “handshake” to replace an expired nuclear arms treaty, officials have said.
The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty , known as “New Start”, expired on Thursday, 16 years after it was originally signed to prevent a nuclear war.
During talks between Washington and Moscow in Abu Dhabi – where Ukraine and Russia concluded a second day of negotiations on Thursday – officials agreed to continue to observe the terms of the treaty beyond its expiration.
Both countries agreed to continue to adhere to the terms for at least six months while a new deal was negotiated, one US official said.
However, another American official warned that this agreement would only be upheld on the basis of a “handshake” as the law did not allow for an official extension of the treaty, the Axios news website reported.
“We agreed with Russia to operate in good faith and to start a discussion about ways it could be updated,” he said.
Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, said on Wednesday that one of the reasons America had been hesitant to extend the treaty was because it did not include China , which has developed a small but rapidly expanding nuclear arsenal.
Beijing has shown no interest in joining an agreement that would limit its nuclear programme.
The issue of nuclear proliferatio n was not discussed during a lengthy phone call between Donald Trump, the US president, and Xi Jinping, his Chinese counterpart, in a phone call on Wednesday.
The New Start treaty caps the number of nuclear warheads the US and Russia can deploy on submarines, missiles and bombers and includes important transparency mechanisms.
Meanwhile, the US army said that Washington and Moscow had agreed to re-establish a military dialogue four years after it was suspended, just before Vladimir Putin launched an invasion of Ukraine.
“This channel of communication was suspended in the fall of 2021, just prior to the onset of the conflict,” said a spokesman for the United States European Command.
Communication is due to restart following meetings in Abu Dhabi between General Alexus G. Grynkewich, Commander of US European Command, and senior Russian and Ukrainian military officials.
Several European countries, including France and Italy, have also called on the continent to re-engage with Moscow in order to bring about an end to the conflict in Ukraine.
Emmanuel Macron , the French president, reportedly sent Emmanuel Bonne, his most senior foreign adviser, to hold talks with Yuri Ushakov, his Russian counterpart, in the Kremlin on Tuesday.
Russia and Ukraine’s peace talks resulted in the release of 157 prisoners of war on each side – the first such exchange in five months.
Steve Witkoff, Mr Trump’s peace envoy, said the agreement showed that the peace talks were worthwhile, although negotiations are yet to result in a major breakthrough.
“This outcome was achieved from peace talks that have been detailed and productive. While significant work remains, steps like this demonstrate that sustained diplomatic engagement is delivering tangible results and advancing efforts to end the war in Ukraine,” he said.
“Discussions will continue, with additional progress anticipated in the coming weeks.”
Donald Trump has failed to make any headway in ending Russia’s war with Ukraine despite talks with Vladimir Putin in Alaska last year - Kevin Lamarque/Reuters
Some of those who were released in the exchange on Thursday fought in the Battle of Mariupol in 2022, where Russian troops were accused of committing war crimes in their fight for the eastern Ukrainian city.
Tass, the state-run Russian news agency, reported on Thursday that Moscow continued to demand that Ukraine withdraw from parts of the Donbas region not currently under Russian military control.
It also urged all countries involved in a future peace agreement to recognise the Donbas region as Russian.
“Russia sees recognition of Donbas by all countries as part of a larger agreement,” a source said.
Ukraine is yet to comment on the latest round of peace talks but president Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly ruled out ceding land to Russia that remains under his control.
Putin’s forces currently control about 80 per cent of the Donbas, which consists of Luhansk and Donetsk. Analysts believe it would take several years before Russia was able to conquer the rest of the region.
Sources also told Tass that Putin rejected proposals for Nato troops to be stationed in Ukraine but would agree to a multinational response force that could come to Kyiv’s aid in the event of another invasion.
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