US and Russia to Hold Arms Control Talks in Geneva

The US and Russia will hold “Strategic Stability” talks in Geneva, Switzerland, on July 28th with the goal of working towards arms control, the State Department said Friday. The US delegation will be led by Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, who will be fresh off a trip to China.

President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to hold such talks when they met in Geneva on June 16th. “This meeting follows up on a commitment made between President Biden and Russian President Putin to have a deliberate and robust dialogue between our two nations that will seek to lay the groundwork for future arms control and risk reduction measures,” the State Department said in a press release.

Early on in his presidency, Biden moved quickly to extend New START, the last arms control treaty between the US and Russia. The treaty was due to expire on February 5th, but Biden and Putin agreed to extend it for another five years with no preconditions.

While Biden extended New START, his administration scuttled an opportunity to salvage the Open Skies Treaty, which allowed unarmed surveillance flights over participating countries. The Trump administration withdrew from Open Skies year. Moscow left open the possibility of reviving the treaty, but the Biden administration notified Russia that it would not rejoin Open Skies in May. After the US notification, Russia formally withdrew from the accord.