Kremlin says sides agree quick arms talks needed

Termination of New START left no caps on the two largest atomic arsenals.

- BY VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV AND JAMEY KEATEN

DMITRY PESKOV said Russia and U.S. discussed future of nuclear arms control.

(RAMIL SITDIKOV Pool)

Russian and U.S. negotiators discussed the expiration of the last remaining nuclear arms pact between the two countries and agreed on the need to quickly begin new arms control talks, the Kremlin said Friday, even as the U.S. emphasized the need for China to join a future arms pact and accused Beijing of covert nuclear tests.

The New START treaty terminated Thursday, leaving no caps on the two largest atomic arsenals for the first time in more than a half-century and fueling fears of an unconstrained nuclear arms race.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared his readiness to stick to the treaty’s limits for another year if Washington followed suit. U.S. President Trump has ignored the offer and argued he wants China to be a part of a new treaty, which Beijing has rebuffed.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio reiterated that China should be involved in a potential new nuclear treaty. “An arms control arrangement that does not account for China’s buildup, which Russia is supporting, will undoubtedly leave the United States and our allies less safe,” he said. Another U.S. diplomat accused Beijing of secretly conducting nuclear tests.

Russian and U.S. negotiators discussed the future of nuclear arms control in the United Arab Emirates, where Russian, Ukrainian and U.S. delegations held two days of talks on a peace settlement in Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Friday.

“There is an understanding, and they talked about it in Abu Dhabi, that both parties will take responsible positions and both parties realize the need to start talks on the issue as soon as possible,” Peskov said.