MOSCOW, February 21. /TASS/. Moscow's decision not to withdraw from the New START treaty altogether, but only to suspended participation in it creates an opportunity for restoring a constructive dialogue on the issue of nuclear security, the board chairman of the Foundation for the Development and Support of the Valdai discussion club, Andrey Bystritsky, told TASS.
He recalled that Russia had decided to suspend its participation in the treaty for a number of reasons, such as the growing confrontation with the NATO bloc as a whole, the existence of nuclear arsenals of other NATO member states, information about "certain US intentions in the field of nuclear weapons", Washington’s non-compliance with the rules of this treaty and its "irrelevant nature from the standpoint of threats and challenges."
"What is important here, among other things, is that the treaty’s operation is being suspended. This means that there may be some possibility of restoring a constructive dialogue in the field of nuclear security," Bystritsky said.
The expert emphasized that the future of New START was directly linked to the configuration of the world that was now taking shape before everyone's eyes.
"Of course, there is always some hope for the extension of this treaty, but this should be placed in a broader context," Bystritsky said, noting that the United States was currently pursuing a course of confrontation with Russia.
On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin in his message to the Federal Assembly said that Russia was suspending its participation in New START, but not pulling out of it altogether. He stressed that before resuming discussions on further activities within the framework of the treaty Russia would like to realize how the arsenals other NATO nuclear powers - Great Britain and France - would be counted in the treaty alongside the US nuclear potential.