US Has More Nuclear Weapons Carriers Than Allowed Under New START Treaty, Russian Diplomat Says

UNITED NATIONS (Sputnik) - The United States has more carriers of nuclear weapons than allowed under the New START Treaty, deputy head of the Russian delegation to the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference Andrei Belousov said on Thursday.

"The United States actually possesses a greater number of carriers of nuclear weapons than allowed under the treaty. This enables the US side to increase their potential of strategic nuclear weapons by about 1,200 warheads in a very short time. We continue to address this problem within the framework of the Bilateral Consultative Commission [under the New START Treaty]," Belousov told reporters.

Russia, at the same time, does not make the future of talks on a new START successor treaty conditional on resolving this issue, the diplomat noted.

Belousov also said it its premature to speculate on whether Russia and the US will keep their nuclear arsenals at the current levels if New START expires and no successor treaty is negotiated by that time.

Belousov, however, highlighted that the US is no hurry to remove obstacles for Russian inspections of American nuclear facilities under the New START Treaty.

"Our decision to suspend inspection activities under the treaty should in no way be interpreted as Russia's refusal to fulfill its obligations. It's just the opposite. With this step, we strive to ensure the principle of parity under the treaty," Belousov told journalists.

"Americans, meanwhile, are in no hurry to take measures to change the situation. We will be ready to consider resuming inspection activities as soon as appropriate conditions are created for this," he added.

At the same time, Belousov noted that Russia and the United States have not stopped cooperation as part of the New START Treaty, and Moscow is hopeful this will continue until the accord expires in 2026.

"Interaction between Russia and the United States as parties to the New START Treaty has not been interrupted. In the established formats, issues related to its implementation are being considered, necessary data and notifications are being exchanged," Belousov told reporters.

"We expect that such work will continue until the expiry of the treaty, which, as you know, was extended until February 2026," he added.

Russia Sees Need to Intensify Dialogue Among Five Nuclear-Weapon States

Russia believes it is crucial for the five nuclear-weapons states to intensify dialogue, deputy head of the Russian delegation to the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference Andrei Belousov said.

“It is equally important to intensify interaction among the nuclear powers themselves - the nuclear five,” Belousov told journalists.

The NPT conference held in New York is the only forum in which nuclear states discuss a range of issues directly related to nuclear disarmament, he added.

Yet despite the urgency of the matter, US officials are in no hurry to resume dialogue, despite their strong statements to the contrary at the highest level, according to Belousov.

Until now, the parties to the NPT conference have not been able to reach consensus, with Ukraine being one of the biggest points of contention, he said.

The NPT Review Conference, which takes place every five years, is being held in New York from August 1-26 amid growing tensions among nuclear-armed states.

Differences Between Nuclear, Non-Nuclear NPT Parties Hinder Consensus

Differences between nuclear and non-nuclear states on how to disarm are the biggest stumbling block at a the Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, Andrei Belousov said.

The NPT review conference in New York is set to finish on Friday.

"The most acute issue is disarmament. Many states continue to stick to their priorities and initially declared positions. The main contradiction is diametrically opposite approaches pursued by nuclear states and non-nuclear NPT states parties," Belousov told reporters.

Russia is ready to cooperate with all delegations to resolve problems of any complexity, the diplomat stressed.