February 22, 2023, 01:48 – BLiTZ – News
In 1991, in the Russian capital, then-president of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev and his American counterpart Josh Bush Sr. signed the Treaty on the Reduction of Strategic Offensive Arms. This information follows from the publication of RBC.
In 2010, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and US President Barack Obama signed another version of the agreement in Prague, designed for 10 years with the option of extending for another five.
At the beginning of 2021, during a long negotiation process, the parties extended the START until February 5, 2026.
Throughout this time, a dialogue on security assurances has been maintained. Due to the conduct of full-scale battles on Ukrainian territory, the negotiations received a frozen status.
On Wednesday, February 21, Russian leader Vladimir Putin issued an announcement regarding the temporary suspension of the Russian Federation’s participation in the treaty. After taking into account the combined strike potential of the entire North Atlantic Alliance, and not just the United States, the possibility remains to return to the issue of an agreement.
Recall that during his Address to the Federal Assembly, Vladimir Putin announced the suspension of Russia’s participation in the Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty (START-3), as well as readiness to conduct nuclear tests in response to such actions by the United States.
Many foreign social media users have endorsed Putin’s statements as rational and condemned US foreign policy forcing Russia to make such decisions. Read more about this in the material of the BLiTZ.
