Source: Antiwar.com
by Ted Galen Carpenter
“For the first time in several years, there is some positive movement between Russia and the United States on strategic arms control. In late September 2025, Vladimir Putin proposed that Moscow and Washington agree to extend the New Start Treaty – which is set to expire automatically in February 2026 – for one year. That crucial treaty caps the number of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) at 1,550 for each side. President Donald Trump responded that Putin’s suggestion ‘sounds like a good idea to me.’ The Kremlin stated that Trump’s reaction ‘gives grounds for optimism that the United States will support President Putin’s initiative.’ Granted, extending such a crucial agreement merely for a year is a very modest gesture of cooperation, but it reverses an increasingly ominous trend in bilateral relations on arms control.” (10/13/25)