Did Putin just START a nuclear arms race?

The war with Ukraine is here to stay – and Russians better get used to it. That was Vladimir Putin’s message to the Federal Assembly when he addressed them this morning for the first time in nearly two years. Kremlin watchers looking for obvious signs of where Putin wanted to take his ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine may have been disappointed. But Russia’s president did use his speech to ratchet up tensions with the United States – by announcing that Russia is suspending its involvement in the New START nuclear arms deal with America. ‘Our relations have degraded and that’s completely and utterly the fault of the US’, he thundered.

The United States didn’t take long to hit back: ‘The announcement by Russia that it’s suspending participation is deeply unfortunate and irresponsible,’ US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said. The agreement, which was extended in 2021, is the last remaining nuclear arms deal between Moscow and Washington.