Nuclear test: US "Golden Dome" will complicate dialogue on disarmament
The implementation of the American project of the Golden Dome missile defense system may complicate the international dialogue on disarmament issues, Gennady Gatilov, Russia's permanent representative to the UN office in Geneva, told Izvestia. According to him, Washington has not responded to Moscow's proposal to comply with the START-3 limits, which expire on February 5. Experts believe that the conclusion of a new agreement in the near future is unlikely, although the arms race is actually unprofitable for the owners of nuclear weapons.
Will the Russian Federation and the United States be able to create an agreement to replace START-3
The last agreement curbing the nuclear appetites of the superpowers, the Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty, will cease to be in force on February 5. In September 2025, Moscow proposed to Washington that it adhere to the basic provisions of the treaty for another year. In 2010, the Russian Federation and the United States agreed that their nuclear forces should not exceed 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 800 carriers.
The United States has not officially responded to Russia's proposal to comply with quantitative ceilings, Moscow has not received any responses from Washington, Gennady Gatilov, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN office and other international organizations in Geneva, told Izvestia.
— We have not received any signals from the "local" Americans on the START Treaty. During a speech at the first plenary session of the 2026 Conference on Disarmament, the United States only casually mentioned the very fact that this instrument was about to expire. There has still been no official reaction to the proposal of the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, to comply with the quantitative ceilings for the START Treaty after February 5, 2026," the diplomat noted.
At the same time, Moscow remains open to dialogue and the search for solutions to strategic stability, Russian Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said at a briefing on February 4. He also confirmed that there had been no official response from the Americans to Russia's proposals.
After the START Treaty expires, Russia intends to act responsibly and carefully, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. Moscow now assumes that the parties are no longer bound by the obligations of the agreement and are free to choose their next steps. Therefore, the Russian Federation is ready for decisive military-technical countermeasures in order to stop threats after the expiration of the START Treaty. The results of the treaty were summed up on Smolenskaya Square: despite the obvious problems, it fulfilled its main functions and initially helped to discourage the strategic arms race.
The only reaction from the United States was the words of President Donald Trump: "If it expires, it will expire. We'll just make a better agreement." Meanwhile, Washington is starting to create the Golden Dome missile defense system, and infrastructure is planned to be deployed even in Greenland. The goal of the United States is to weaken and, if possible, neutralize the strategic deterrence potentials of other nuclear powers perceived as adversaries, that is, Russia and China. By the way, it was Washington that withdrew from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty in 2002.
The implementation of the Golden Dome project may complicate the international dialogue on disarmament in the future, Gennady Gatilov told Izvestia.
"One of the consequences of the implementation of the Golden Dome project may be a nuclear and conventional arms race, a further increase in conflict potential, an increased risk of miscalculations and misunderstandings, aggravation of contradictions and difficulty in international dialogue on any aspects of disarmament issues," the Russian permanent Representative to Geneva said.
The reason is that Washington's new project has serious negative consequences for strategic stability in the future. Its main problem is global in nature. In addition, it is expected to deploy not only the information, but also the strike echelon of this system in outer space, Dmitry Stefanovich, a researcher at the IMEMO RAS Center for International Security, told Izvestia.
— Apart from Greenland, there is certainly an interest in the appropriate use of the territory of Canada. Meanwhile, the advanced deployment of individual elements of the US missile defense system in Europe and Asia is a reality today," the expert stressed.
Earlier it became known that Canada is officially negotiating to join the new American missile defense initiative.
At the same time, Stefanovic noted that even within the United States there is no complete understanding of the essence of the project at the conceptual level. However, no one doubts that it is impossible to provide an impenetrable shield against modern strategic means of delivering nuclear weapons. Moreover, Russia is forced to take measures to restore the strategic balance, including the transfer to the final stage of developing systems that guarantee the reliability of deterrence, such as the Burevestnik.
Is the world facing a new arms race
Publications about the danger of a new nuclear arms race are appearing in the Western press for the first time since the Cold War. The expiration of the START Treaty will mark the moment when the two nuclear Powers will remain without corresponding restrictions for the first time in 40 years. Scientists are also talking about the risks. According to the authors of the Doomsday Clock project from the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, the world is separated from nuclear war by 85 seconds - this is the worst indicator since the start of the project in 1947.
The United Nations noted to Izvestia that the current situation is characterized by the highest risk of nuclear confrontation in recent years. They called for "the creation of an arms control regime appropriate to the rapidly changing environment." The Kremlin stands in solidarity. "The world will remain in a more dangerous situation compared to what it has been so far," said Dmitry Peskov, the press secretary of the Russian president.
The key question that arises after the end of START 3 is whether Moscow and Washington will move to dramatically increase their capabilities. Vasily Klimov, a researcher at the IMEMO RAS Center for International Security, does not expect a significant increase in the number of deployed strategic carriers and nuclear warheads.
— If the parties manage to avoid a contractual and legal vacuum by means of politically binding agreements on compliance with the maximum ceilings of the treaty, predictability in the field of START development will remain for some time. There will be time to agree on a new treaty, which will replace START-3," the expert believes.
To implement this scenario, it is necessary to take into account the missile defense factor. Without ensuring transparency and trust measures, not to mention restrictions, in the field of missile defense, Moscow is unlikely to agree on restrictions and reductions of strategic offensive weapons, Klimov believes.
Back in 2023, Russia suspended the agreement because it was not allowed to conduct full-fledged inspections of nuclear facilities provided for in the treaty. In addition, Russia insists on joining the negotiations on nuclear arms control between the United States' allies, Britain and France. The White House demands China's participation, since, according to American analysts, China will reach approximate parity with the United States and Russia in terms of the number of deployed nuclear warheads by the mid-2030s.
Paris and Beijing say they will not join the talks because their countries' nuclear arsenals are not comparable to Russia and the United States. The UK is also not in the mood to participate in disarmament. In addition, its arsenal is closely linked to the American one.
Dmitry Stefanovich believes that the prospects for a new agreement on the limitation of strategic offensive arms between the Russian Federation and the United States are now quite slim. However, there are objective reasons that can make such an agreement a reality. Arms control promotes more effective approaches to the development of these weapons, and restrictions on the arsenals of a potential enemy allow resources to be spent on other areas. In general, an unlimited arms race is not feasible today.
Moscow and Washington clearly say that they are interested in control and are determined to prevent confrontation. However, so far the demands of the parties remain opposite. Therefore, even informal compliance with the limits will be a constructive basis for launching negotiations.
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