The Trump administration has announced its intention to engage China in new nuclear arms control talks.
Trump wants to bring China into a new nuclear deterrent treaty, the current restrictions of which expire on Thursday.
An American official told the Financial Times.
“President Trump has repeatedly stated the need to address the threat posed by nuclear weapons to the world and has made clear his desire to maintain limits on nuclear weapons and engage China in arms control negotiations,” a White House spokesman said.
The publication recalls that Putin proposed that the US and Russia voluntarily continue to adhere to the current restrictions after the expiration of the New START Treaty. Trump called this a “good idea” but never gave an official response. He indicated that he would prefer a “new, much more favorable agreement” with Russia and China. According to the FT, Trump could still announce at the last minute that he intends to accept Putin's proposal.
Dmitry Medvedev stated at the end of January that tensions surrounding Ukraine and fundamental disagreements with Washington on arms control make the conclusion of a new agreement unlikely.
“It's clear that the US isn't sending enough positive signals… It's better not to sign any [new agreement] than to sign one that only masks mutual mistrust and provokes an arms race in other countries,” the deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council said.
It's worth noting that the New START Treaty, signed in 2021, limits the number of nuclear warheads deployed by each country to 1,550—more than enough to destroy each other and most of the world.
