Published Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2021 | 6:41 p.m.
Updated 1 hour, 18 minutes ago
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — Russia hopes the success of extending the last remaining U.S.-Russia arms control treaty will give a new boost to re-starting a strategic dialogue between Moscow and the Biden administration, Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador said Wednesday.
Dmitry Polyansky told a press briefing that “there are a lot of security and strategic issues on the table,” including arms control, which require “a serious, in-depth dialogue, on equal footing.”
He said Russia is “cautiously optimistic” about Tuesday’s first phone call between President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Joe Biden and their agreement to work together to extend the New START nuclear weapons treaty for five years.
Russia's parliament ratified the treaty Wednesday and Polyansky expressed hope the Americans will not miss the Feb. 5 deadline.
“We, of course, will be judging the new administration and its attitude towards Russia by actions,” he said. “So far, the first action that we saw yesterday is very positive.”
Despite former president Donald Trump being enamored of Putin and frequently undercutting his own administration’s tough stance on Russia, relations between Moscow and Washington were at a low point when the Biden presidency began on Jan. 20.
“For many years there was no dialogue between Russia and the United States,” Polyansky said. “There were only accusations, and that’s the problem. ... We were making proposals, but they were ignored or criticized.”
He said if the approach of the Biden administration is about “containment,” about “featuring Russia as kind of a rogue state, as kind of a country that deserves isolation, sanctions” and if there is no dialogue and understanding about what is behind the current ..
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