The Kremlin on Monday saw as “positive” a statement by US national security adviser Jake Sullivan, who called for bilateral talks on nuclear arms control, and added that Russia remains open to dialogue.

Sullivan said on Friday that the United States would abide by the nuclear weapons limits set out in the New NPT, the latest nuclear arms reduction treaty between the two Cold War rivals, until it expires in 2026 if Russia does the same, according to Reuters. , referring to Agerpes.

In February, President Vladimir Putin suspended Moscow’s participation in the treaty.

“This is an important and positive statement by Mr. Sullivan. Of course, we expect that this will be de facto confirmed by steps through diplomatic channels, and then the proposed dialogue formats can be taken into account,” said Kremlin press secretary Dmytro Peskov.

Signed by then-US President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev in 2010, the New SNO Treaty limits the number of strategic nuclear warheads the United States and Russia can deploy.

It came into effect in 2011 and was extended in 2021 for another five years after Joe Biden took office as US president.

According to the agreement, Moscow and Washington undertake to deploy no more than 1,550 strategic nuclear warheads and a maximum of 700 long-range missiles and bombers.

When the pact works as intended, it allows both U.S. and Russian inspectors to verify that the other side is complying with the treaty.

___

Follow the latest events of the war in Ukraine LIVETEXT on HotNews.ro