The Hill:
Russia is anxious to extend the New Start Treaty, but the United States should not be. Vladimir Putin had purportedly raised the issue at the Helsinki summit, but President Trump has denied reaching any deal. The agreement expires in 2021, so it would be wise not to rush.
President Trump has reportedly criticized the New Start Treaty, which does have significant flaws and verification loopholes. Most concerning, while the Senate considered it, members received classified intelligence that caused several to oppose it. In 2010, Christopher Bond (R-Mo.), who at the time was vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, sent around a classified letter to his colleagues outlining what he identified as the irredeemable problems and circumstances surrounding the New Start Treaty. The information Bond had has yet to be made public.
Despite this, enough Republicans supported ratification. In a shrewd political move, now retired Senator Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), perhaps calculating the inevitable ratification of the New Start Treaty, wrangled the Obama administration to commit billions of dollars to modernize the aging U.S. nuclear arsenal as it sought Senate support.
