EXCLUSIVE: House Armed Services Committee chairman Mike Rogers, R-Ala., said that President Biden’s administration should "accelerate planning" on Russian nuclear deterrence after the communist nation pulled out of the New START nuclear treaty with the U.S.
Fox News Digital exclusively obtained Rogers’ press release following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s retreat from the treaty reducing and limiting the number of nuclear warheads in each country’s arsenal.
Rogers said Putin’s move is "no surprise" given his decade-long dismantling of nuclear arms treaties with America and said that the Biden administration should "accelerate" their plans in the event Russia "breaches New START caps" on nuclear warheads.
RUSSIA SUSPENDS PARTICIPATION IN NEW START NUCLEAR TREATY WITH US, PUTIN SAYS
"Vladimir Putin’s decision to suspend participation in the New START Treaty should come as no surprise; over the last 10 years, he has systematically dismantled nuclear arms treaties with the United States and pursued an arms race," Rogers said in the release.
"Whether Russia has already broken the treaty’s warhead limitations is not clear, but hoping Russia returns to the fold is not wise, nor is it a strategy," the Alabama Republican said. "The Biden Administration should declare Russia to be in ‘material breach’ of the New START Treaty and direct the Joint Staff and U.S. Strategic Command to accelerate planning in the event Russia breaches New START caps."
"All options must be on the table including deploying additional nuclear forces and increasing the readiness of our nuclear triad," he continued. "We must also accelerate efforts to modernize our nuclear systems, and I again call on the President to abandon his plans to weaken our deterrent such as canceling the Nuclear Sea Launched Cruise Missile."
Rogers’ comments come the same day that Putin pulled Russia out of its 2010 New START nuclear arms treaty with the U.S. The treaty was formed while Biden was serving as vice president.
Putin announced Tuesday that Russia was pulling back from the New START treaty with the United States, which reduces and limits each country's nuclear arsenal.
The New START treaty, first signed in April 2010, limits the U.S. and Russia from having more than 1,550 nuclear warheads deployed on delivery systems like intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarine-launched ballistic missile or heavy bombers.
Both the U.S. and Russia are capable of deploying far more than the allotted nuclear warheads as Washington and Moscow have a combined total of more than 13,000 warheads – making up roughly 90% of the world’s nuclear arsenal, according to data provided by the Arms Control Association.
FOX News Digital's Landon Mion and Chris Pandolfo contributed reporting.
