NEW YORK, January 4. /TASS/. Advancing the arms control agenda and extending New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) meets the interests of both Russia and the United States, incoming US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told CNN.
According to Sullivan, "even at the height of the Cold War" there were areas of cooperation between Russia and the US, "more specifically in arms control and nuclear non-proliferation." "Today I very much believe that that the United States and Russia can act in their national interests to advance in arms control and strategic stability agenda, to deal with the threat that nuclear weapons pose to the world," he said.
That is something that President-Elect Joe Biden has tasked his team with pursuing "right out of the gate in the early days and weeks of the administration," he noted. "A key treaty between the US and Russia, the New START Treaty, expires just a little more than two weeks after we come into office and we will have to look at extending that treaty in the interests of the United States."
In late December, CNN reported citing its sources that Biden was likely to give the green light to quickly extending New START for a short term in order to launch more substantive talks on strategic stability with Moscow. One of the sources said Biden considered New START’s extension and using this deal as a foundation for new arms control agreements.