MOSCOW, October 2. /TASS/. Moscow did not suggest "finding creative ways" to ensure a full or partial extension of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) because the document does not include such an option and extending it would require a lot of effort, Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a briefing.

Speaking about the proposal Russian President Vladimir Putin put forward on September 22, calling for maintaining the restrictions stipulated in the treaty, the diplomat stressed that it should not be viewed as "Russia’s invitation to fully or partially extend New START," because that was not the intention. "Russia did not suggest finding some creative ways to ensure a full or partial extension of New Start in its initial form as a binding international legal instrument," she explained.

Especially because, in Zakharova’s words, "the treaty does not include an option for its re-extension." "It would be quite a challenge, which would require a lot of effort, including separate negotiations, ratification procedures for potential agreements and other things," the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman emphasized.

Meanwhile, the thing to note is that New START remains suspended. "We have enshrined this in legal documents, citing a number of issues that still have not been properly resolved," the diplomat noted. "There is currently neither enough time nor a solid foundation in terms of Russia-US relations, which are going through early stages of normalization, to effectively address the above-mentioned obstacles. These factors also need to be taken into account," Zakharova added.

The reality is that on February 5, 2026, "the life cycle of New START will end in full accordance with the timeframe set out in the treaty." "Bearing all that in mind and for the reasons thoroughly specified by the Russian president, we suggest acting outside the treaty, which has been suspended and will soon expire. The idea is just that the voluntary mutual restrictions, under which Russia is currently complying with the New START quantitative limitations, should remain in place after February 2026," Zakharova elaborated.