The US and Russian delegations would be negotiating the extension of the last nuclear treaty in force in the world, the New Start, which expires this Thursday (5), according to information from three sources to the portal Axios.
One of the people familiar with the matter said dialogue between the powers was taking place in Abu Dhabi, on the sidelines of talks on Ukraine, but so far there is no indication that the parties have reached an agreement. Two other sources warned that the draft plan still needed approval from both presidents.
The termination of the last nuclear disarmament treaty in force between the USA and Russia, in force since 2010, renders ineffective the limits that regulated the nuclear arsenal of both powers, especially in relation to the number of strategic or deployed weapons.
In total, the two countries accumulate more than 85% of nuclear warheads worldwide. More than 3,900 nuclear warheads are estimated to be deployed, including around 2,100 that have been kept on alert alongside ballistic missiles, according to early 2025 data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
The American delegation sent to the Middle East is led by special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin suggested that Washington accept a short-term extension of New Start. However, President Trump has remained silent on the matter to date. The Russian Foreign Ministry lamented, in a highly critical statement released on Wednesday, that “our ideas were deliberately ignored.”
The main obstacle for the American president to remain in the treaty is skepticism towards China, which has a much smaller but rapidly developing arsenal.
