The nuclear arms treaty between Washington and Moscow is about to expire. 85 seconds to midnightNew Start, the last remaining nuclear arms treaty between the United States and Russia, will expire on Thursday, ending decades of legally binding limits on their stockpiles of weapons. Despite its limitations and the suspension of data sharing, allowing New Start to expire will make the world more dangerous because it removes one of the last remaining impediments to a renewed nuclear arms race. Six other states have nuclear weapons: France, Britain, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel, although they have far fewer warheads than the big three. Trump’s planned Golden Dome missile defence system, for example, threatens to diminish the deterrent effect of Russian and Chinese nuclear weapons, incentivising them to develop new systems to circumvent it.

Source: The Irish Times February 02, 2026 07:36 UTC