Trump REJECTS Putin's proposal, calls for fresh nuclear framework instead of New START

United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump has rejected a proposal by Russian President Vladimir Putin to voluntarily extend the limits on nuclear deployments after the New START treaty between the two countries expired on February 5, 2026.

Trump declared the now-expired treaty, which limited the arms race between the two great powers, to be “badly negotiated”, alleging that Russia grossly violated it.

In a post on his platform Truth Social, Trump wrote, “Rather than extend ‘NEW START’ (A badly negotiated deal by the United States that, aside from everything else, is being grossly violated), we should have our Nuclear Experts work on a new, improved, and modernized Treaty that can last long into the future.”

The treaty capped deployed strategic nuclear warheads at 1,550 and limited each country to 700 deployed missiles and bombers ready for use.

Soon after the treaty expired, the Deputy Chair of the Security Council of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev warned the U.S. that “winter is coming”.

Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Peskov, also expressed regret over the U.S. being unwilling to re-negotiate the agreement.

Peskov said Thursday that Russia will continue to behave responsibly when it comes to nuclear weapons, adding that all of the country’s policies will be primarily guided by national interests.

It remains unclear when the two countries will decide to engage on treaty issues. 

There is speculation that the U.S. might also want to engage China in the negotiations, potentially shifting the agreement from a bilateral to a trilateral framework.