Russia: Nuclear Weapons 'Only' Bulwark Against World
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- Dmitry Peskov said nuclear deterrence is 'the only thing that protects the world from a global war,' speaking at a foreign policy forum in Moscow on June 24, 2026, and warned the global security system is 'eroding.'
- New START, the last nuclear arms control treaty between Russia and the United States, expired in February 2026 — leaving no treaty in force to restrict nuclear deployments for the first time in decades.
- Signed in 2010, the treaty had capped Moscow and Washington at 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads each; before it lapsed, both countries repeatedly accused each other of failing to adhere to the deal.
- Neither Russia nor the US has moved to renew or replace New START, though both sides agreed to reestablish high-level military talks.
- Donald Trump has pushed to bring China into a new treaty; Beijing has publicly rejected the pressure, and Moscow says Britain's and France's nuclear arsenals should also be included if China is brought in.
- Peskov added that 'new types of non-nuclear weapons will emerge' that 'may eventually match nuclear weapons in destructive power' as technology develops.
- Vladimir Putin has repeatedly invoked nuclear rhetoric throughout his four-year offensive on Ukraine, triggering charges of 'reckless sabre-rattling' from Europe and the United States.
Why it matters: With New START expired and no replacement in sight, the 1,550-warhead cap that bound the world's two largest nuclear arsenals has lapsed — freeing both sides to expand deployments while China, Britain, and France remain outside any new framework.
