The Kabul Tribune (KT) — U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres on Wednesday described the expiration of the New START Treaty as a “grave moment” for international peace and security, warning that the world now faces a future without binding limits on the strategic nuclear arsenals of the United States and Russia.
In a statement issued in New York on Feb. 5, 2026, Guterres said the treaty’s expiration at midnight marks the first time in more than 50 years that no formal constraints exist on the strategic nuclear weapons of the two countries, which hold the vast majority of the world’s nuclear stockpile.
He said decades of nuclear arms control agreements — from the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) to New START — helped prevent catastrophe, reduce the risk of miscalculation and facilitate the removal of thousands of nuclear weapons from national arsenals.
“The dissolution of decades of achievement could not come at a worse time,” Guterres said, noting that the risk of nuclear weapon use is at its highest level in decades.
Despite the setback, the U.N. chief said the moment presents an opportunity to establish a new arms control framework suited to evolving global conditions. He welcomed statements from both U.S. and Russian leaders acknowledging the destabilizing effects of a nuclear arms race and the importance of preventing unchecked proliferation.
Guterres urged both countries to return to negotiations without delay and to agree on a successor framework that restores verifiable limits, reduces risks and strengthens global security.
