the Extension of the Treaty on the reduction of strategic offensive arms (start-3) will be one of the main topics of the meeting of representatives of Russia and the United States, which will take place in Vienna on 22-23 June. This was announced by Russian Ambassador to Washington Anatoly Antonov.
In his words, Moscow wants to understand what are the future plans of the American party in respect of this agreement. “As of now, at least I have the impression that the Americans have many complaints about the substance of the agreement”, – quotes the Ambassador RIA Novosti.
Antonov also said that Russia has already long figured out all the consequences of a possible refusal to prolong start-3 with the United States. If this happens, “our response will be calm, thoughtful, balanced,” the diplomat said. However, he expressed a strong belief that Russia’s national security will not be affected, although the negative effects will affect international stability.
start-3, signed in 2010, is the only existing agreement between Russia and the USA on the limitation of armaments. The agreement expires in February 2021. Earlier, the President, Donald trump talked about the desire to develop new trilateral nuclear agreement between Russia, China and the United States. Beijing rejected this idea.
