US accuses Russia of violating key nuclear arms control treaty

Washington condemns Moscow for what it says is a refusal to facilitate inspection activities' regarding New Start treaty

The United States has accused Russia of violating the New Start treaty, the last major pillar of post cold-war nuclear arms control between the two countries, saying Moscow was refusing to allow inspection activities on its territory.

The treaty came into force in 2011 and was extended in 2021 for five more years. It caps the number of strategic nuclear warheads that the United States and Russia can deploy, and the deployment of land- and submarine-based missiles and bombers to deliver them.