New US administration plans to negotiate with Russia on the extension of the Treaty on Measures for the further reduction and limitation of strategic offensive arms (START, unofficial name – START-3). CNN announced this on the air Jake Sullivan , who is the US President-elect Joe Biden selected as his National Security Advisor.
According to him, even at the height of the Cold War, the countries had areas for cooperation – primarily the issues of arms control and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. “I am confident that today the United States and Russia can act within the framework of their national interests, advance on arms control and strategic stability, and deal with the threat posed by nuclear weapons to the entire world,” Sullivan said.
He noted that the new administration plans to immediately address the issue of extending START-3. Sullivan added that it is in the interests of the United States.
Separately, the future adviser spoke about plans to punish those responsible for the largest cyberattack on American government agencies. According to him, the Biden administration will find out how much damage was done and make the perpetrators pay a high price. Sullivan added that Russia is most likely behind the break-ins, although no one has brought any charges. “It will be a combination of punishment and strengthening our defenses,” he promised.
Previously it was reported that the scale of cyberattacks on US government agencies turned out to be much larger than intended. The breaches could have affected 250 internal networks in which the criminals “lived” for nine months.
The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty was signed in 2010 by the presidents of Russia and the United States – Dmitry Medvedev and Barack Obama . The agreement came into force in 2011 and expires in February 2021.