Putin Keeps New START’s Ghost Alive with One-Year Limit Pledge

President Vladimir Putin is keeping the ghost of the New START treaty alive, pledging that Russia will voluntarily honor its nuclear limits for one more year. The move comes after the formal expiration of the pact and is aimed at preventing a strategic free-for-all between Moscow and Washington.
Putin explained the decision as a necessary measure to ensure “predictability and restraint” in a volatile international climate. Speaking to his Security Council, he said Russia would continue to cap its deployed nuclear warheads at 1,550 and its strategic delivery systems at 700, the core tenets of the now-defunct treaty.
However, the continued life of these limits is conditional. Putin made it clear that this gesture is contingent on the United States showing similar self-control. The policy’s viability, he warned, depends on the U.S. refraining from any actions that could “disrupt the existing balance of deterrence.”
The Russian leader also hopes this ghostly adherence to the treaty can resurrect diplomatic talks. He suggested that mutual restraint could create a more favorable atmosphere for a “substantive strategic dialogue,” which has been moribund for years.
This one-year pledge is a temporary measure, not a permanent solution. It buys time for diplomacy and allows Moscow to assess Washington’s intentions. After a year, Russia will re-evaluate, deciding whether to let the ghost of New START finally rest.