№ 1 (8), 2025. Can Putin-Trump Summit Fix Russian-US Arms Control?

Russian and American experts have widely assumed that on July 16, 2018, one of the issues that may come up during the Russia-US summit in Helsinki is arms control. Unlike many other issues, it would also be a less controversial topic for the US administration battled by the accusations of “collusion with Russia.” All US presidents – Republicans and Democrats – discussed arms control issues with Moscow since 1970s. Now, with the Russia-US relations at the record low and deteriorating, the issue of arms control between two nuclear superpowers has gained urgency unseen since the end of the Cold War. Both countries are modernizing their nuclear forces, pursuing new types of weapons aimed at deterring each other, and sending mixed messages about their nuclear postures. With a range of possible conflict points from Syria to Ukraine and from the high seas to cyberspace, Moscow and Washington can ill afford a crisis in the nuclear sphere on top of it. PIR Center Consultant Andrey Baklitskiy argues why the reality is more nuanced and why the Helsinki summit cannot solve all Russian-US arms control problems.