The Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns released the following statement on February 5, 2021, regarding the Biden administration's renewal of the New START Treaty with Russia to limit and regulate nuclear weapons.
February 5, 2021
On February 4, 2021, the Biden administration announced that it would renew the New START treaty with Russia, a treaty that has long been a vital part of the strategy to limit and regulate the two major nuclear powers’ nuclear weapons arsenals.
Dan Moriarty, Sustainable Pathways to Peace Program Coordinator at the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns, said,
“We applaud the Biden administration’s renewal of the New START treaty with Russia. Nuclear weapons pose an existential threat to life on our planet. New START allows the world’s two greatest nuclear powers to limit possession of these deadly weapons. May it also serve as a first step toward the urgent task of disarmament. Especially during the global economic crisis triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, we cannot afford a costly arms race or the destabilization it would stoke. New START avoids such an arms race, signals a welcome return to international diplomatic engagement, and creates vital space for further cooperation toward economic recovery and a world free of nuclear weapons.”
