China calls on the US and Russia to continue reducing their nuclear arsenals.
The Chinese embassy called on the United States and Russia to resume steps toward nuclear disarmament.
According to RIA Novosti on January 15, Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, told RIA Novosti that China calls on the United States and Russia to resume the implementation of nuclear arms control agreements and move toward further reductions of their arsenals on a verifiable and legally binding basis.
Liu Pengyu told the news agency: "It is crucial that the U.S. and Russia fulfill their special and primary responsibilities in nuclear disarmament, resume the implementation of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, and outline a roadmap for further significant reductions of their nuclear arsenals on a verifiable, irreversible, and legally binding basis."
According to a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy, this is precisely the approach the international community expects from Moscow and Washington.
The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) between Russia and the United States is set to expire on February 5, 2026. Prior to this, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia is ready to continue complying with the treaty's terms for a year after its expiration. Putin explained that steps to comply with START's terms would be effective if the US also took similar steps. According to some media reports, US President Donald Trump called President Putin's proposal for START a good idea.
However, in January 2026, in an interview with the New York Times, President Trump commented on the impending expiration of the New START Treaty by saying, "If it expires, let it expire," but expressed hope for a "better" agreement involving China.
The New START Treaty was signed on April 8, 2010, in Prague. This document replaced the 1991 New START Treaty and, upon entering into force, superseded the 2002 Strategic Troop Reduction Agreement.
The treaty stipulates a real, verifiable, and irreversible reduction in the number of strategic offensive weapons. Under the terms of the treaty, seven years after its entry into force—February 2018, and thereafter—the total number of strategic offensive weapons of each side shall not exceed 700 deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and heavy bombers; 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads counted as launchers; and 800 deployed and undeployed launchers and heavy bombers.
The New START treaty was extended for another five years in February 2021 after Russia and the United States exchanged diplomatic notes.
