US-Russia New START treaty expires: Arms race ahead?

WITH NUCLEAR LIMITS GONE, EXPERTS WARN OF BUILD-UPS, GLOBAL RISKS

- BY STEPHEN N. R.

A file picture shows US President Donald Trump greeting Russian President Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska, in August last year.

(AP)

The expiration of the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty between the United States and Russia has triggered fresh fears of a global nuclear arms race, leaving the world's two largest nuclear powers without formal limits on their arsenals for the first time in decades, CNN reported.

The treaty, known as New START, had capped the number of deployed nuclear warheads and delivery systems on both sides, while allowing inspections that reduced the risk of miscalculation and surprise escalation.