US to Withhold Nuclear Weapons Data From Russia

 

by Kyle Anzalone | Mar 28, 2023

Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev after signing the "New START" treaty in Prague

The White House announced on Tuesday that it will cease sending the Kremlin data on its nuclear weapons. Under the New Start treaty, the US and Russia agreed to share the information. However, Moscow has suspended its involvement in the agreement as relations with Washington have deteriorated. 

National Security Council Spokesman John Kirby told reporters that the White House made the decision as Russia is in violation of the treaty. The Joe Biden administration believes the move will push Moscow to return to compliance with the New Start treaty. 

“As a lawful countermeasure intended to encourage Russia to return to compliance with the treaty, the United States will likewise not provide its biannual data update to Russia,” Kirby said. “The United States informed Russia in advance of this step. In the interest of strategic stability, the United States will continue to promote public transparency on our nuclear force levels and posture.” Kirby added that Moscow was no longer sharing nuclear data with the US. 

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov seemed to contradict Kirby, saying there has been no contact between the two sides. “There is no contact on the [New Start] Treaty with the Americans,” he explained. 

Russia officially suspended its participation in the New Start treaty on March 1, but the Kremlin says it will continue to comply with the nuclear weapons caps set per the agreement. Russia’s top diplomat said, “our readiness to adhere to the caps on strategic nuclear arms in the treaty is nothing more than a goodwill gesture.” 

The Kremlin argued US travel restrictions on Russian officials prevented Moscow from inspecting Washington’s nuclear stockpile. 

The White House also says it is not changing its nuclear posture. “We have not seen any reason to adjust our own strategic nuclear posture nor any indications that Russia is preparing to use a nuclear weapon,” Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House Spokeswoman, said on Monday.

The New Start treaty was the last arms control agreement between the US and Russia. The agreement caps the number of nuclear weapons each country deploys, requires inspections and the transfer of nuclear data. 

 

About Kyle Anzalone

Kyle Anzalone is news editor of the Libertarian Institute, opinion editor of Antiwar.com and co-host of Conflicts of Interest with Will Porter and Connor Freeman.

https://libertarianinstitute.org/news/us-to-withhold-nuclear-weapons-data-from-russia/