Russia's proposal to freeze nuclear warheads for a year was meant for the previous US administration, which did not want to extend the New START as is, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Wednesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th January, 2021) Russia's proposal to freeze nuclear warheads for a year was meant for the previous US administration, which did not want to extend the New START as is, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov said Wednesday.
On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and US leader Joe Biden had a phone conversation, in which they said they were happy about the agreement to extend the New START. According to the White House, both presidents asked their teams to work hard to be able to extend the treaty before it expires on February 5.
"The idea of a freeze was a package deal with the idea to agree with the US proposal to extend for one year," Ryabkov said, adding that Russia was "looking for a solution and showing reasonable flexibility."
"We may now say that those proposals are voided. There is no reason to go back to that now. We will hold talks based on a different situation," the diplomat said.
