Putin Offers Nuclear Treaty Extension: No Preconditions

Reuters reports:

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Moscow is prepared to immediately extend the only remaining nuclear arms reduction pact with the United States. Speaking at a meeting with military officials, Putin said that Russia has repeatedly offered the U.S. to extend the New START treaty that expires in 2021 but that it hasn’t heard back.

“Russia is ready to extend the New START treaty immediately, before the year’s end and without any preconditions,” he said. The pact, which was signed in 2010 by U.S. President Barack Obama and then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, limits each country to no more than 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers.

Putin says Russia ready to extend New START nuclear arms treaty https://t.co/ifyOGyoeAh pic.twitter.com/scr1y07WYS

— Reuters (@Reuters) December 5, 2019

1/2 Russian military channel Zvezda says this is how Russian nuclear suitcase looks like. Launch button is white. This is 1st time that this device is shown on Russian TV. Clearly intended for Western audiences as part of Putin’s saber-rattling. https://t.co/jznBx1dzpA pic.twitter.com/KWFeVoIhI8

— Alex Melikishvili (@A_Melikishvili) December 5, 2019

2/2 St Petersburg-based defense enterprise Impuls is apparently producing them.

— Alex Melikishvili (@A_Melikishvili) December 5, 2019