Russia to Honor Expired Nuclear Treaty if US Reciprocates, Says Lavrov

• Russia pledges to uphold missile and warhead caps from the expired New START nuclear accord, provided the US does the same.
• Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced the conditional commitment after the 2010 agreement lapsed last week.
• The treaty previously set limits of 1550 deployed warheads and 700 deployed launchers for each side.
• The collapse of New START raises concerns about a potential three-way arms race involving Russia, the US, and China.
• Moscow faces fiscal pressures from the Ukraine conflict, making an unconstrained nuclear buildup costly.