‘US, Russia agree to extend ‘New START’ nuclear arms treaty

The Russian lower house of Parliament, the Duma, ratified a new START nuclear treaty with the US.

The Russian lower house of Parliament, the Duma, ratified a new START nuclear treaty with the US.

The New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty), was signed in 2010 by former US President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart at the time, Dmitry Medvedev.
The treaty was to replace the 1991 START treaty.
The treaty limits each party to 700 deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) or deployed submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), 1,550 nuclear warheads on deployed ICBMs and SLBMs, and 800 deployed and non-deployed ICBM launchers.
It also envisions a rigorous inspection regime to verify compliance.

Overview

Signed: 8 April 2010
Entered into Force: 5 February 2011
Duration: Ten-year duration with option to extend for no more than five years
Parties: United States, Russian Federation

Has the treaty worked?

The U.S. and Russia reduced their nuclear arsenals to the agreed-upon limits by the 2018 deadline set forth in the treaty.

The U.S. had 1,457 deployed warheads and 675 deployed strategic delivery systems as of Dec. 1, 2020, according to the U.S. State Department.
Russia had 1,447 deployed warheads attributed to 510 deployed strategic launchers. Combined, the two countries account for about 90% of the world’s nuclear weapons.