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Uncertainty around future of New START fuels arms race, says Putin

11 October 2019 17:07 (UTC +04:00)

Uncertainty around the future of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) is fueling a new arms race, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) Council of Heads of State, APA reports citing TASS.

"Uncertainty remains around the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START, which expires in February 2021," Putin pointed out.

"The US administration still has not made up its mind as to what it’s going to do in this regard. As far as we can understand, debates are underway within the administration as some say that there is a need to extend the Treaty, while others think the US should not be tied down by limitations. This creates an atmosphere of uncertainty, fueling an arms race, which is really bad," the Russian president added.

Putin said he had sent "a relevant message to the leaders of many countries." "We have stated that we don’t plan to deploy intermediate-range missiles in case we develop them, but we will certainly work on this since the Americans now have such weapons," he emphasized.