The world can breathe a small sigh of relief this week. The last remaining arms control treaty between the U.S. and Russia, called New START, will not expire on Feb. 5 after all, as recently feared.
In the nick of time, Russian President Vladimir Putin offered his new American counterpart an extension of the treaty for five years, an option stipulated in its text. Joe Biden agreed — after giving Putin the requisite talking to about Russia’s massive cyberattack on the U.S., its jailing of the activist Alexey Navalny and other recent outrages.
