LONDON/BERLIN/PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 27th January, 2021) The United Kingdom welcomes the extension of the New START Treaty between the United States and Russia, a Foreign Office representative told Sputnik Wednesday.
"We welcome the US proposal to extend the duration of the START treaty with Russia. The treaty has made an important contribution to strategic stability, transparency and confidence-building. We support the continuation of the treaty and its robust verification mechanism," the representative said.
Germany also commended the nuclear treaty's extension as "big news."
"The new US administration is thereby making an important initial gesture. Extension of the treaty between the United States and Russia to limit the number of strategic nuclear warheads truly benefits security, also for Europe," Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.
According to the diplomat, Germany now expects "further encouraging steps."
"The setbacks of recent years, for the INF Treaty on intermediate-range nuclear forces and the Treaty on Open Skies, must urgently be reversed," he stressed.
Given "the quantum leaps" in technology over the past few years, Maas also called for "broader negotiations with international actors, for the purpose of strengthening global arms control and shoring up the disarmament architecture."
France has joined the UK and Germany by welcoming the extension of the New START Treaty.
"We acknowledge that the first steps of the US administration show the return of the United States to a multilateral approach. The Paris Agreement, the return to the World Health Organization, the desire to return to the Vienna agreement on the Iranian nuclear program, the agreement with the [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin to extend the New START Treaty for five more years ... This is very important news," French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said, addressing the French Senate.
The minister also stressed the need to normalize the EU-US relations in the economic field and put an end to the trade war.
Hours earlier, Russia's upper house ratified the agreement's extension the day after the Russian and US leaders, Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden respectively, agreed on the treaty extension in their first official phone call.
Immediately upon taking office, the Biden administration signaled its intention to extend the nuclear arms reduction treaty, reversing a policy of evasion and protraction by the previous occupant of the Oval Office.
The extension comes at the 11th hour since the treaty was set to expire on February 5 of this year.
