U.S. Advances Multilateral Nuclear Arms Talks with Russia and China After New START Expires

A senior U.S. State Department official disclosed on Monday that the United States held meetings with a Russian delegation in Geneva and will convene talks with a Chinese delegation on Tuesday to explore potential multilateral nuclear arms control agreements.

The initiative follows the expiration of the New START treaty, which regulated U.S.-Russian missile and warhead deployments. The United States has called for an expanded framework that would incorporate China as well.

However, China’s ambassador for disarmament, Shen Jian, recently indicated that his country would not engage in new nuclear arms control negotiations with Russia and the United States at this time. It remains uncertain whether Tuesday’s discussions will constitute formal talks.

Chinese and Russian permanent missions to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Geneva declined to provide comment on the matter. Earlier this month, the U.S. accused China of conducting a secret nuclear test in June 2020—a claim Shen categorically denied.

The senior official noted that the United States had recently held productive bilateral discussions with both the United Kingdom and France, which are also permanent members of the UN Security Council. They characterized advancing negotiations to include all five Security Council members as “the next logical step,” expressing optimism about the prospects for a comprehensive agreement.