Trump reacts to Putin’s nuclear treaty offer

The Russian president has proposed extending New START for another year

US President Donald Trump has reacted positively to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin’s proposal to prolong the last remaining arms control pact between the two nations for another year.

The US president was asked about his take on Putin’s offer on New START while speaking to reporters outside the White House on Sunday.

“That sounds like a good idea to me,” he said.

Trump’s remark was welcomed by Kirill Dmitriev, an economic adviser to Putin and one of the key figures in ongoing efforts to normalize ties with Washington.

The US president’s stance suggests that Washington and Moscow are “fairly likely” to extend the agreement, Dmitriev wrote on Telegram.

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Last month, the Russian president signaled Moscow’s readiness to prolong the 2010 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) for another year, provided the US reciprocates and refrains from actions that could break the nuclear status quo.

Earlier this week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Washington had yet to respond to the proposal.

The last standing arms reduction agreement between the US and Russia, which limits each side to no more than 1,550 deployed strategic nuclear warheads and 700 deployed delivery systems, is set to expire next February unless extended.