UN warns New START expiry leaves US, Russia without nuclear limits
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned that the expiration of the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty between the United States and Russia marks a dangerous turning point for global security.
Speaking after the New START treaty officially expired on February 5, Guterres said the world is now entering a period without legally binding limits on the strategic nuclear arsenals of the two countries that hold most of the world’s nuclear weapons, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
He described the moment as a “grave” development for international peace, noting that arms control agreements between Washington and Moscow have historically played a key role in preventing nuclear escalation and reducing the risk of catastrophic miscalculation.
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From early Cold War agreements to New START, bilateral arms control deals helped reduce thousands of nuclear weapons and created verification systems that increased global stability, Guterres said.
He warned that the collapse of these frameworks comes at a time of rising geopolitical tensions and rapid technological change, adding that the risk of nuclear weapons being used is now at its highest level in decades.
Despite the risks, Guterres urged both countries to return to negotiations and work toward a new agreement that would restore verifiable limits, reduce global nuclear risks and strengthen international security.
The New START treaty was originally signed in 2010 and entered into force in 2011, replacing earlier Cold War-era arms reduction agreements and serving as the last major nuclear arms control framework between the two nuclear superpowers.
By Aysel Mammadzada
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