President Biden Extends NEW START Treaty

 

     Joe Biden comes to the White House with an unmatched record in terms of arms control experience. As a senator, he focused on securing adherence to SALT, and NEW START was brokered while he was vice president. 

     Now, his administration has made its first moves regarding arms control. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced that the United States and Russia had agreed to extend NEW START for five years, maintaining the only nuclear agreement between two nations who possess a combined 90 percent of the world's weapons of mass destruction.

     Blinken has also announced that the United States intends to update the treaty to make it more comprehensive and secure other treaties with China and North Korea as part of an ultimate vision of ending the use of weapons of mass destruction.