Russia recently announced its plan to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in its ally Belarus and declared that it will cease providing all nuclear-related information to the United States. Amid escalating conflicts with the West due to the Ukraine war, this move runs counter to the international community's disarmament efforts, stirring anxiety day by day.
On the 29th (local time), according to major foreign media, Sergey Ryabkov, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister, stated in an interview with local media that "all information exchanges between Russia and the United States under the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) have been suspended."
This constitutes a violation of the agreement between the U.S. and Russia. Under the New START treaty signed in 2010, the U.S. and Russia agreed to reduce the number of nuclear warheads and delivery vehicles below certain levels and to conduct mutual periodic inspections of nuclear facilities.
However, following President Vladimir Putin's mention last month on the 22nd about suspending participation in New START, the Deputy Foreign Minister also unilaterally announced the suspension of treaty implementation on this day. In particular, after the U.S. decided not to disclose the number of its nuclear warheads in response to Putin's statement on suspending New START participation, Russia is interpreted to have raised its level of response on this day.
Since the invasion of Ukraine in February last year and the subsequent escalation of conflicts with the West, Russia has threatened the international community by showcasing its nuclear capabilities. After failing to secure expected results such as weapons support during talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping this month, Russia announced the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. This marks the first time in 27 years, since 1996, that Russia has deployed nuclear weapons abroad.
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