Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law on Friday, approving the
extension of New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), a treaty signed
between the United States and Russia, focussed on reducing the use of arms, a
week before its expiration, the Kremlin said in a statement, CNN reports.

The nuclear arms control treaty will now remain valid till February 5,
2026, the Kremlin said. New START is the last existing pact between the two
nations, after the US withdrew from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces
Treaty (INF) under the Donald Trump administration in 2019.

US President Joe
Biden and Putin engaged in a telephonic conversation on Tuesday, expressing
contentment as both countries discussed diplomatic relations on extending the
pact. The talks concluded as the Russian Parliament voted in favour of the
five-year extension.

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The treaty was
first signed by former US President Barack Obama and former Russian President
Dmitry Medvedev in 2010 for a period of 10 years.

The treaty limits
the usage and number of strategic offensive weapons that both countries can possess.

The treaty limits each
side to possess no more than 700 deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles
(ICBMs), submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) and heavy bombers; no
more than 1,550 warheads on deployed ICBMs, deployed SLBMs and heavy bombers
for nuclear armaments; and a total of 800 deployed and non-deployed ICBM
launchers, SLBM launchers, and heavy bombers.

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“Renewing the
Treaty meets the national interests of the Russian Federation, makes it
possible to maintain the transparency and predictability of strategic relations
between Russia and the United States and to support global strategic stability;
it will have a beneficial effect on the international situation, and contribute
to the nuclear disarmament process,” the Kremlin said in the statement
published Friday evening.

 White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters
“that the New START Treaty is in the national security interests of the
United States, and this extension makes even more sense when the relationship
with Russia is adversarial, as it is at this time.”