The Joe Biden administration has decided to update the status of its deployed nuclear forces following Russia’s withdrawal from the START agreement. The Kremlin left behind an important arms control agreement.
The United States has 1,419 warheads deployed, 662 land-based and submarine-launched missiles, and heavy bombers. This was stated in a press release from the US Department of State on May 16.
This number of weapons operates within the limit of 1550 warheads in 700 pieces of equipment. The norms are determined by the Treaty on the Reduction of Assault Weapons.
The Joe Biden administration decided to update the status of its deployed nuclear forces by examining Russia’s transparency. This came after the Kremlin abandoned a historic arms control agreement.
“Despite Russia’s alleged suspension of New START, the United States continues its ‘tradition of transparency,'” the State Department said in a statement.
Washington continues its commitment to transparency among states that have nuclear weapons in their arsenals. In the statement, it was stated that such activities are extremely valuable in order to further reduce the possibility of misunderstandings and miscalculations on this issue, as well as arms competition. Such precautions are especially important in times of high voltage around the world.
START deal
The Strategic Assault Weapons Agreement (START), signed by the United States and Russia in 2010, limits the number of nuclear warheads that the two countries can deploy simultaneously. The treaty with the United States remained the final document limiting the nuclear arsenals of both states. The document was extended until February 2026, but Vladimir Putin suspended Russia’s participation in the agreement on February 21, canceling the necessary audits and data exchange to verify obligations under the last agreement between Russia and the United States. It was one of the few areas where Moscow and Washington continued to cooperate. US President Joe Biden called the decision a “big mistake”.
Recall that on April 30, Deputy of Russia Andrei Isaev advised countries to acquire nuclear weapons in order to preserve sovereignty. According to him, the authoritarian leaders of Iraq and Libya, Muammar Gaddafi and Saddam Hussein, would still be alive if they had nuclear weapons.
Source: Focus
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