Senior Russian Lawmaker Says Biden's Election Promises Untrustworthy

The campaign promises of US Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden to pursue an extension of the New START nuclear arms reduction treaty with Russia and return to the Iran nuclear deal are just a part of his campaign and are unlikely to become a reality, a senior Russian lawmaker told Sputnik on Friday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th July, 2019) The campaign promises of US Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden to pursue an extension of the New START nuclear arms reduction treaty with Russia and return to the Iran nuclear deal are just a part of his campaign and are unlikely to become a reality, a senior Russian lawmaker told Sputnik on Friday.

On Thursday, Biden said that if he was elected and Iran returned to compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), known as the Iran nuclear deal, he would return the United States to the 2015 agreement. He also said pledged to pursue an extension of the New START once elected.

"These [Biden's] promises are a pre-election move and their cost is 'five cents.' Especially when the Democrats are making such promises," Vladimir Dzhabarov, the deputy chairman of the Russian upper house's foreign affairs committee, said.

According to the lawmaker, these pledges are unlikely to help Biden win the election since Donald Trump's approval rating is now high.

"I believe that Trump understands that he will still have to start negotiations with Russia on the extension of the New START nuclear arms reduction treaty," Dzhabarov added.

He did not rule out the possibility of Washington wanting to continue the negotiation process with Iran on its own terms.

The New START went into force in 2011 and covers a ten-year period with the possibility of a five-year extension. The agreement limits the number of deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missiles, nuclear armed bombers and nuclear warheads.