Expert: dialogue with the United States on strategic stability will end at START-3

Launching a ballistic missile from a submarine. Archive photoMOSCOW, May 26.The conflict in Ukraine and the unconstructive position of the United States do not give hope for the signing by Moscow and Washington of a new agreement on the limitation of strategic arms: after the expiration of START-3, the half-century history of dialogue between the two powers in the field of security will end, said the former head of the international treaty department of the Russian Defense Ministry, General lieutenant Evgeny Buzhinsky. Exactly 50 years ago, on May 26, 1972, the USSR and the USA signed the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (SALT-1) in Moscow, which laid the foundation for all subsequent Soviet/Russian-American treaties in this area: SALT-2 (1979 ), START-1 (1991), START-2 (1993) and the only START-3 treaty in force today between Moscow and Washington (2010, expires in 2026). SALT-1 limited the number of ballistic missiles and launchers of both sides on that the level at which they were at that moment. At the same time, the document did not limit the number of heavy bombers and nuclear charges, but only fixed their current number. In addition, the agreement obliged the USSR and the USA to limit the number of sites protected by missile defense systems to one. The Soviet Union deployed such a system around Moscow, and the US around 12 launchers at the Grand Forks base.Sweden will not allow the deployment of nuclear weapons and military bases in the country. Prerequisites for signing Buzhinsky recalled that the first serious prerequisite for the start of a strategic dialogue was the Caribbean crisis of 1961: after its resolution, Moscow and Washington began to think about measures to de-escalate tensions. The need to sign mutually limiting agreements became completely clear by the end of the 1960s, when both the USSR and the USA had at their disposal 30 thousand nuclear warheads. «It was expensive and unnecessary — there is no need to destroy the globe 10 times in a row. Then the parties realized that they needed to negotiate and that what to do with it, because the uncontrolled growth of warheads, accompanied by statements by both the American and Soviet leadership that they could produce missiles like sausages, could have tragic consequences for the whole world,» Buzhinsky told RIA Novosti.The commander of the Strategic Missile Forces called the Sarmat missiles the Russian «sword of vengeance» «START-4″ will not be reach a compromise on this issue.» The Republicans, known for their «extremist» position, voiced by Trump (to involve China in the agreement, as well as to make tactical nuclear weapons the subject of this agreement) will not agree to this. Biden, on the other hand, has less than three years left in power — the most ideal the scenario, in my opinion, would be an indefinite extension of the current START-3, but, unfortunately, this is impossible,» the expert noted. weapons are fundamentally unacceptable, since they are for Russia «the most important means of regional deterrence.» «If it were not for the conflict in Ukraine, then purely theoretically, over these three years, Moscow and Washington could come up with something and put it on paper, but now Russian-American relations are actually frozen, and when there is a trend towards recovery, completely unclear. I am personally pessimistic about this issue,» Buzhinsky admitted.Russia still adheres to START-3, US says End of half a century of dialogueAccording to the expert, after the expiration of START-3 in 2026, which continues to be observed despite unprecedented international tension, the world will face a situation where between two unfriendly nuclear powers there will be no safeguards left in the form of joint documents on strategic stability.» Thus, we are coming close to a situation where strategic stability will not be ensured by any documents and will finally become a thing of the past. There is, of course, little good in this. For half a century, the USSR/Russia and the United States have eliminated the arms control system,» Buzhinsky said. At the same time, the agency's interlocutor noted that the negative effect of the abolition of START-3 would be more noticeable for the United States than for Russia. «Of course, the economic power of the United States is greater, than the Russian Federation, and if they wish, they will be able to rivet a lot of warheads, but in this it doesn't make much sense, since life on Earth could be over after the first exchange of nuclear strikes. In addition, the US military is so used to keeping us under control under this treaty that the elimination of START-3 will be extremely unpleasant for them,» he said. jpg» />The Pentagon called nuclear deterrence reliable and effective START-3The document was signed on April 8, 2010 in Prague by then-presidents Dmitry Medvedev and Barack Obama. It replaced a similar document from 1991, and also, after entry into force, replaced the Treaty on reduction of strategic offensive potentials of 2002. The document provides that each of the parties reduces its nuclear arsenals in such a way that in seven years and in the future, the total number of weapons does not exceed 700 intercontinental ballistic missiles, ballistic missiles on submarines and heavy bombers, as well as 1550 warheads and 800 deployed and non-deployed launchers.Russia successfully launched Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile