US Does Not Seek Arms Race With Russia, China - STRATCOM Commander

Mohammad Ali (@ChaudhryMAli88) Published February 14, 2020 | 12:11 AM

The United States is not expanding its nuclear arsenal or seeking an arms race with Russia and China, US Strategic Command head Adm. Charles Richard said in a congressional testimony on Thursday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th February, 2020) The United States is not expanding its nuclear arsenal or seeking an arms race with Russia and China, US Strategic Command head Adm. Charles Richard said in a congressional testimony on Thursday.

"We do not seek parity... the recapitalization that we're asking for is, for one, we don't seek war, we don't seek greater number, we simply seek a sufficient number of capabilities to enable us to achieve national objectives," Richard said when asked by Senator Deb Fischer if the United States is looking to expand its nuclear forces.

Richard also said the claim that the United States is trying to start an arms race is baffling.

The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) is the last remaining nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia after the Trump administration terminated the Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty on August 2.

The New START is set to expire in February 2021 but it can be extended for another five years.

The New START stipulates that the number of strategic nuclear missile launchers limits the number of deployed strategic nuclear warheads to 1,550 and strategic bombers to 700.

Renewing the New START is a step officials in Russia have repeatedly said they were ready to take, but the US administration has said it would prefer concluding a new treaty that would include both Russia and China.