The State Duma voted to extend the START treaty with the United States

The State Duma on Wednesday, January 27, voted for a bill on ratification of the agreement on the extension of the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty (START-3). President Putin introduced the bill only the night before.

The agreement between Moscow and Washington, which expires on February 5, 2021, is extended for the maximum possible period of five years, until February 5, 2026.

The terms of the agreement remain unchanged - the threshold of nuclear warheads is 1,550 units, deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles, ballistic missiles of submarines and heavy bombers - up to 700 units.

There are two important new aspects in the extended agreement, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said today. Firstly, it does not provide for an extension after 2026, and secondly, the latest Avangard hypersonic units will be included in the offset of nuclear warheads.

Update

Less than two hours after the vote in the State Duma, the extension of START-3 was approved by the Federation Council.

Find out more

We talked about the history of the START-3 treaty and its significance in the context of relations between Russia and the United States under the Joe Biden administration here .