MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th July, 2020) Moscow continues to remain in close contact with Beijing on the issue of strategic stability and respects the Chinese government's unwillingness to be a part of trilateral arms control talks proposed by the United States, Director of the First Asian Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry Georgiy Zinoviev said on Tuesday.
"We are maintaining close contact with China on the issue of strategic stability. We respect the position of China and their rejection of Washington's ideas of launching trilateral talks on this issue," Zinoviev said during an online conference held by the Rossiya Segodnya news agency.
The New START treaty, the only remaining arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, is set to expire in February 2021. Washington has expressed its willingness for Beijing to be included in a new version of the treaty, although Chinese officials have expressed no desire to come to the negotiating table.
Representatives from Moscow and Washington held talks in late June to discuss the potential for extending the treaty. Another round of negotiations may take place in late July-early August, and US Special Representative for Arms Control Marshall Billingslea once again stated that China would be invited.
