Diplomats from Russia and the United States met on Monday in Helsinki to discuss a replacement for the strategic arms limitations which will expire in February, according to officials.
Chief U.S. arms negotiator Marshall Billingslea met with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov. They met in Vienna in August, and Monday's discussions are regarded as a continuation of that negotiation.
Finnish President Sauli Niinisto served as host and moderator, and met separately with each negotiator on Monday morning.
"Two interesting discussions," Niinisto said in a statement. "In the current world situation, all dialogue is important, and welcome its continuation between the United States and Russia. I wish further progress in agreeing on arms control."
The landmark Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or START, was agreed to by the United States and Russia in 1991, and was enforced beginning in 1994. It limited the number of bombs and missiles available to each side. The United States has insisted that China should be included in any updated or new arms limitation treaty.
START expired in 2009, with the 2002 Treaty of Moscow replacing it as negotiations for what eventually became New START. New START went into effect in 2011, and its ten-year term will expire in 2021. All three treaties contain similar goals of reducing nuclear weapons held between the two countries.
"The next treaty will have to be multilateral, it will have to include China, and the framework that we are articulating together as two great powers, us and the Russians, will be the framework going forward that China will be expected to join," Billingslea told reporters in August.
It is possible that a bilateral deal with Russia can be resolved, with a separate treaty China to be negotiated later. President Donald Trump's administration has recently reduced its demand for China's inclusion, and the tone of the talks suggests the White House is prepared to let the current treaty lapse, experts have said.
Related Links
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com
Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com
All about missiles at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com
| Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution. |
||
| SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal |
 |
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only |
UN nuclear watchdog to visit 2nd Iran site in 'a few days'
Vienna (AFP) Sept 14, 2020
The head of UN's nuclear watchdog said Monday that inspectors would "in a few days" visit the second of two sites in Iran where undeclared nuclear activity may have taken place in the early 2000s. Iran's refusal to allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) access to the two sites had caused a diplomatic row for months. This had further strained efforts to save the 2015 landmark Iran nuclear deal, which has hung by a thread since the US pulled out of it in 2018. The accord promises ... read more
from Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense https://ift.tt/33B5wRz
via space News
No comments: