Russia Violates Major Nuke Treaty, U.S. Says

The State Department on Tuesday accused Moscow of violating a major nuclear arms control agreement by not allowing on-site inspections and refusing to discuss its concerns, TURAN'S Washington correspondent reports.

“Russia is not complying with its obligation under the New START Treaty to facilitate inspection activities on its territory,” a State Department spokesperson told reporters.

Moscow also failed to comply with the treaty’s obligation to convene a session of the Bilateral Consultative Commission in accordance with the treaty-mandated timeline, the spokesperson said.

Russia’s refusal to allow inspections “prevents the United States from exercising important rights under the treaty and threatens the viability of U.S.-Russian nuclear arms control" per U.S. officials.

This is the first time Washington has accused Moscow of violating the agreement. The Biden administration delivered the findings to Congress earlier on Tuesday. New START, established under the Obama administration in 2011, dictates the number of nuclear warheads both countries can deploy at any time.

"There is nothing preventing Russian inspectors from traveling to the U.S. and conducting inspections,” the State Department spokesperson said.

Alex Raufoglu

Washington D.C.