The Pope (Photo: ETTORE FERRARI/ EPA)

The United States and Russia should renew the New START nuclear arms control treaty, which expires on Thursday, February 5. This was stated by the Pope Leo XIV after the time of its a weekly audience in the Vatican, reports Vatican News.

Leo XIV recalled that this treaty "was a significant step in limiting the spread of nuclear weapons."

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He emphasized that the current situation in the world "requires that everything possible be done to prevent a new arms race" and called for "constructive efforts in favor of disarmament and mutual trust." Leo XIV also emphasized that the current international situation "requires urgent action to prevent escalation."

"I am making an urgent appeal to prevent this document from lapsing into oblivion. Now, more than ever, we need to replace the logic of fear and distrust with a common ethic that can guide choices in favor of the common good," he said.

The Pope summarized that without a replacement program, the expiration of START III "opens a period of growing uncertainty, which causes anxiety in the international community about the weakening of nuclear arms control mechanisms."

REFERENCE
The Treaty between Russia and the United States on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (START III) was signed in 2010 by the then US President Barack Obama and the President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev. According to the document, Washington and Moscow were to reduce the number of deployed nuclear warheads to 1,550, and intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine ballistic missiles, and heavy bombers to 700.
  • In March 2023, Russia announced that it would not provide the United States with data on its nuclear forces. The United States responded that will do the same.
  • In the fall of 2025, the dictator of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin said that Russia is ready to extend the main quantitative limits under the START III treaty for a year after February 5, 2026. US President Donald Trump this idea was approved by.