“We had a new interaction with Russia yesterday to press them that at the end of this month there is a deadline for a mutual exchange of data, which occurs twice a year under the Treaty. Russia replied that it would not provide information. And as a diplomatic response, the United States will also withhold information. We will continue to consider what diplomatic retaliatory measures are necessary. We are trying to strike a balance between responding to Russia’s irresponsible behavior, but also continuing to we’re demonstrating what we believe would be a responsible approach to a nuclear power,” John Plumb, the US assistant secretary of defense for space policy, said Tuesday during a hearing before a House Armed Services subcommittee.
A representative of the National Security Council in Washington categorized the refusal to transmit data as “a legal retaliatory measure intended to encourage Russia to return to compliance with the Treaty”. “Russia’s refusal to provide this data will constitute a violation of the Treaty, which will add to existing violations. In the interest of strategic stability, the United States will continue to promote public transparency regarding our nuclear force levels and configuration,” the official stressed. from the US National Security Council, quoted by CNN.
The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, announced in February the suspension of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), signed with the United States. Vladimir Putin denounced the attitude of the West in the military conflict in Ukraine. As a reaction, the US Presidency has announced on several occasions that it wants contacts with the Moscow Administration for discussions on actions in the sense of nuclear stability.
The Foreign Ministry in Moscow has warned that Russia will not return to compliance with the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) until the United States changes its approach to the conflict in Ukraine.
The risk of a nuclear confrontation between Russia and the United States has reached its highest level in recent decades, Sergei Ryabkov, deputy Russian foreign minister, said last week, warning that the two countries are practically in open conflict because of the war in Ukraine. Sergei Ryabkov stated that there is no question of Russia now returning to complying with the nuclear arms reduction agreement. “I would not enter into a discussion about whether the probability of a nuclear conflict is high at present, but it is higher than any situation in the last decades”, said Serghei Riabkov. The Russian official emphasized that the Moscow Administration maintains its commitment to keep the world “safe and free” from the risk of a nuclear war, but pointed out that the current situation is not normal, given that Russia is, “de facto, in a state of open conflict with the United States”.
The Kremlin has consistently accused Washington of direct involvement in the war in Ukraine by supplying arms to Kiev. The United States and Western allies claim that they are providing weapons to Ukraine to defend its territorial integrity, in the context of the Russian military invasion.
(source: AFP)
