In his nearly two hours’ long speech to the Federal Assembly, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia will halt its participation in the Russian-US Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (New START).
Russia has not exited the agreement, rather halted participation in it.
The so-called New START is the most recent mutual agreement signed between the US and Russia. Russia had previously halted participation in the talks regarding arms control in November 2022. Mutual inspections at military bases were put on hold due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to Putin, the US and NATO have made it clear that their goal is dealing Russia a strategic defeat.
He said the West «was directly involved» in the strikes on Russia’s aircraft.
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan called Putin’s claims about the West threatening Russia and this serving as justification for the war with Ukraine absurd. Nobody is attacking Russia, he said, adding that it is absurd to believe there were some threats coming from Ukraine or any other sides towards Russia.
Advisor to the Ukrainian President’s Office Mykhailo Podolyak said that with his speech to the Federal Assembly, Putin publicly demonstrated his confusion and lack of understanding of the situation, stressing that the Russian Federation is a dead-end.
According to Podolyak, Putin demonstrated that he has and will not have any perspective solution, because he sees «Nazis, Martians and conspiracy theories everywhere». He said this is Putin’s «Sic transit gloria mundi in the Russian parliament».
Latvian MEP Ivars Ijabs said Putin’s speech gave him the general impression that Putin is driven up a tree with no way off. The politician said the bad news from Putin’s speech was the decision to halt participation in New START.
«This does not mean Russia will start arming up and creating new nuclear arms.
It means information exchange will become more difficult.
The agreement provides for mutual inspections and exchange of information on movement of arms. By halting its participation in the agreement, Russia will likely increase tension and distrust in relation to possible use of nuclear arms. Of course there will be a shock from the public from it, because we will not know at what point and how Russia could use its nuclear arms,» said the MEP.
Ijabs added the good news is that Russia halts its participation. The country has not exited the agreement. It is possible Putin thinks it could serve as another topic to boil over with the West and eventually bring Russia back to New START.
In his speech to the Federal Assembly, Russia’s president did not mention victories on the Ukrainian front, any further escalation of the war, or a new mobilisation wave.
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