Vladimir Putin threatens to restart the nuclear arms race

Correspondent in Moscow

In the absence of concrete measures on military action in Ukraine or even the start of a new wave of mobilization, Vladimir Putin ended his “speech to the nation” on Tuesday with a stark threat. Russia’s suspension of participation in the New Start Nuclear Disarmament Treaty, the latest bilateral treaty likely to limit Russian and American strategic arsenals. The “shoe” of the Kremlin in the long-distance fight between the Russian president and his American counterpart Joe Biden, whose speech in Warsaw was expected a few hours later.

The “New Start” agreement, signed in 2010 by Barack Obama and then-Kremlin leader Dmitry Medvedev and then extended until 2026 after Joe Biden arrived in the White House, specifically calls for on-the-spot inspections to ensure that the parties respect; their obligations. This process was interrupted in March 2020 in the context of the epidemic, and negotiations on the resumption of inspections were supposed to resume in November last year. The plans remained a dead letter, while tensions between the two Cold War adversaries came to a head in the turmoil of the Ukraine war. The Russian move was called Tuesday a “Very disappointing and irresponsible” by the head of American diplomacy Antony Blinken.

This address of the President, which is traditionally held every year, did not take place in 2022. It was deliberately timed to be almost the first anniversary of the start of the “special military operation” in Ukraine, next Friday. On that occasion, parliamentarians, pillars of the regime and Donbas veterans and wounded gathered in Gostin Dvor, a former covered market not far from the Kremlin. In front of this audience, which rose several times to give him a standing ovation, Vladimir Putin ratcheted up the pressure even further, threatening Western nations with new nuclear tests if the US went down this path first. “At the beginning of February this year. NATO issued a statement asking Russia to return to the implementation of the treaty (…), including conducting inspections of our nuclear defense facilities.” Vladimir Putin emphasized on Tuesday, referring to the statement issued by the Alliance on February 3. “Russia does not fulfill the legally binding obligations imposed on it by the new Commissioning Agreement”.can we read there?

The USA and NATO openly say that their goal is to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. And after that they want to walk around our defense stations as if nothing happened?

Vladimir Putin

It is “theatre of the absurdPutin broke in. “We know that the West is directly involved in the attempts of the Kiev regime to attack our strategic air base. The drones used for this have been re-equipped and modernized with the help of NATO specialists. said the Russian President. “The USA and NATO openly say that their goal is to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia. And after that, they want to go around our defense stations, as if nothing happened?”, pretended to be offended by the head of the Kremlin. According to him“In the United States, the validity period for the combat use of certain types of nuclear weapons is expiring (…), and some in Washington are considering testing, given the fact that the United States is developing new types of nuclear weapons.” . In this situation“, “MD of the Russian Federation” and “Rosatom (Russian atomic energy giant, Ed.must ensure that they are ready to test Russian nuclear weapons”Putin said. “Of course, we will not be the first to do it. But if the US will test it, we will.”,” he began, ending his rant with a warning “No one should have the dangerous illusion that global strategic parity can be destroyed.”

Putin is in power until 2036

Without the big news, Vladimir Putin’s long, stained-glass remarks, an hour and a half speech, could be read through the prism of the “accusatory turn” according to which the “collective West” has long wanted; “Take Russia”. Arming Ukraine, The United States already “started to brutally destroy all the foundations of the world order created after the Second World War”.

Pushing his logic, the head of the Kremlin estimated on Tuesday that by presenting an “ultimatum” to Russia to resume discussions on the “New Beginning” treaty, NATO should also comply with its obligations. “With its collective statement published on February 3. editor’s noteNATO has actually requested to become a party to the Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty. we agree with that”Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday. Even if it means deviating from the nature of the “New Beginning” because it is a bilateral agreement. This only applies to the two major nuclear powers (which alone possess 90% of these weapons in the world) and limits their arsenals to a maximum of 1,550 warheads each, a reduction of about 30% compared to the previous limit. in 2002

On Tuesday, however, the Kremlin chief said the “New Beginning” should include NATO’s other two nuclear powers, France and Britain, which Moscow sees as “military” because it supplies weapons to Kiev. “How did we count the strategic arsenals?” (from France and Great Britain)that is, the total strike potential of the Alliance., asked Vladimir Putin. It is only after having “I understood what NATO countries like France and Great Britain are saying that we can resume (strategic) discussions.” added the Kremlin chief, detailing that it is simply a matter of Russia at this stage “stop” his participation in the contract.

Also, two or three sentences about political deadlines in Russia will attract attention on Tuesday. “In September of this year, local and regional government elections, as well as the 2024 presidential elections, will be held in strict compliance with the law.” said Putin, who will then complete his fourth term. Theoretically, if he is re-elected, he can remain in power until 2036. Some observers also saw the beginning of the campaign in Tuesday’s speech. The head of the Kremlin has been praising for a really long time “resistance” full of economy“opportunities” and promised a long list of welfare benefits, giving the sometimes odd impression that the war was just background noise that had to last.

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