The Russian Foreign Ministry announced its openness to dialogue with the United States after the START Treaty ends.

Russia is open to a political and diplomatic settlement with the United States in the field of strategic security against the background of the expiration of the Treaty on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (START Treaty). This was announced by the Russian Foreign Ministry on February 4.

"In the future, our country remains open to finding political and diplomatic ways to comprehensively stabilize the strategic situation on the basis of equal and mutually beneficial dialogue solutions if appropriate conditions are created for such interaction," the ministry said in a statement.

The START Treaty expires on Thursday, February 5. The Russian Foreign Ministry noted that in September 2025, Moscow offered voluntary compliance with the restrictions under the agreement for a year after its termination. However, Washington did not respond to this proposal in any way. In this regard, Russia assumes that the parties are "no longer bound" by their obligations under the agreement, the ministry explained.

"At the same time, the Russian Federation intends to act responsibly and carefully, building its line in the field of strategic offensive arms based on a thorough analysis of US military policy and the overall situation in the strategic sphere," the ministry said.

The ministry emphasizes that the Russian Federation will be ready, among other things, "for decisive military-technical countermeasures" in the event of a threat to national security. Ignoring the US initiatives to extend the START Treaty, as indicated in the Russian Foreign Ministry, will be taken into account when determining foreign policy.

Expiration date: the UN called for a flexible format of arms control

The START Treaty may be replaced by mutual data exchange with less stringent quantitative restrictions.

Russian Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said on the same day that the Russian side would act in a balanced and responsible manner after the START Treaty expires. He also noted that the path to a negotiated settlement to ensure strategic stability remains open.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on February 3 that it would be very bad for strategic security if Russia and the United States remained without the START Treaty. According to him, time is rapidly decreasing, and in just a few days the world may find itself in a more dangerous situation than before.

In September, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Russia's readiness to adhere to the START Treaty restrictions for another year after February 5, 2026. In turn, the American leader Donald Trump called Russia's proposal on the START Treaty a good idea.

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