Today, on September 22, Russian President Vladimir Putin made an important statement regarding the country's strategic security. It was made at the beginning of an operational meeting with permanent members of the Security Council of the Russian Federation. We offer the full text published on the Kremlin's website.
We have several issues today, including migration policy issues. But I would like to start today with another question — with a question that is extremely important, of fundamental importance for the protection of our national interests, Russia's sovereignty, and for ensuring international security in general, without any exaggeration. I am referring to the situation in the sphere of strategic stability — unfortunately, it continues to deteriorate, which is caused by the combined impact of a number of factors, and of a negative nature, provoking the aggravation of existing and the emergence of new risks of a strategic order.
As a result of the rather destructive steps previously taken by Western countries, the foundation of constructive relations and practical interaction between nuclear-weapon States was significantly undermined. The foundations for dialogue in the relevant bilateral and multilateral formats have been shaken. Step by step, the system of Soviet-American and Russian-American agreements on the control of nuclear missile and strategic defensive weapons was almost completely dismantled - a system that worked both to stabilize the situation between the States possessing the two largest nuclear arsenals and, in general, to strengthen the entire global security.
I repeat again: we have repeatedly talked about the causes and possible consequences of this state of affairs. We associate the multiple problems that have accumulated in the strategic sphere since the beginning of the XXI century with the destructive actions of the West, their destabilizing doctrinal concepts and military-technical programs aimed at undermining global parity, at gaining, trying to gain absolute, overwhelming superiority.
We have consistently and in detail dwelt on these issues, criticized this position, not only emphasized the extreme danger of further degradation of the situation, but also repeatedly put forward concrete ideas for its joint correction. However, our warnings and initiatives have not received a clear response.
I would like to emphasize that no one should have any doubt about this: Russia is able to respond to any existing and newly emerging threats, to respond not in words, but through the use of military-technical measures. An example of this is our decision to abandon the unilateral moratorium on the deployment of medium— and shorter-range ground-based missiles. This was a forced step dictated by the need to adequately respond to programs for the deployment of similar American and other Western-made weapons in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, which directly threatens Russia's security.
Our plans to strengthen the country's defense capability are being built taking into account the changing situation in the world, are being implemented in full and in a timely manner. We are confident in the reliability and effectiveness of our national deterrence forces, but at the same time we are not interested in further escalating tensions and spurring an arms race. Russia has always proceeded and proceeds from the preference and priority of political and diplomatic methods of maintaining international peace based on the principles of equality, indivisibility of security and reciprocal consideration of interests.
Let me remind you that the last significant political and diplomatic achievement in the field of strategic stability was the conclusion of the Russian-American Strategic Offensive Arms Treaty in 2010. However, in the future, due to the extremely hostile policy of the Biden Administration, which violated the basic principles on which this agreement was based, its full-scale implementation was suspended in 2023.
Nevertheless, both sides have declared their intention to voluntarily continue to comply with the central quantitative restrictions under the strategic offensive arms treaty until the end of its life cycle.
Thus, for almost 15 years now, this agreement has continued to play a significant positive role in maintaining the balance of power and certainty in the field of strategic offensive arms.
The START Treaty expires on February 5, 2026, which means the imminent disappearance of the last international agreement on direct restrictions on nuclear missile capabilities. A complete rejection of the legacy of this agreement would be, from many points of view, an erroneous and short-sighted step, which, in our opinion, would also negatively affect the achievement of the goals of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
In order not to provoke a further strategic arms race, to ensure an acceptable level of predictability and restraint, we consider it justified to try to maintain the status quo that has developed due to the START Treaty at the current rather turbulent stage. Therefore, after February 5, 2026, Russia is ready to continue to adhere to the central quantitative restrictions under the START Treaty for one year.
In the future, based on the analysis of the situation, we will make a definite decision on the subsequent preservation of these voluntary self-restrictions. We believe that this measure will become viable only if the United States acts in the same way and does not take steps that undermine or violate the existing balance of deterrence potentials.
In this regard, I ask the relevant departments to continue to carefully monitor the relevant activities of the American side, primarily with regard to the START arsenal. Special attention should also be paid to plans to build up the strategic components of the US missile defense system, including preparations for the deployment of interception means in space. We will proceed from the fact that the practical implementation of such destabilizing actions can nullify the efforts of our side to maintain the status quo in the field of strategic offensive arms. We will respond accordingly.
I believe that the implementation of the Russian initiative could be a significant contribution to creating an atmosphere conducive to substantive strategic dialogue with The United States of America — naturally, when formatting the conditions for its full-fledged resumption and taking into account the whole range of efforts to normalize bilateral relations and eliminate fundamental contradictions in the field of security.
The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko, Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin, Deputy Chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, Head of the Presidential Administration Anton Vaino, Secretary of the Security Council Sergei Shoigu, Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, FSB Director Alexander Bortnikov, Director of the SVR Sergei Naryshkin, Special Representative Sergey Ivanov, President for Environmental Protection, Ecology and Transport.