U.S. and Russian senior diplomats met in Geneva today, for the first round of strategic stability talks under the Biden Administration. The State Department characterized the consultation as “professional and substantive,” and would be followed by further informal consultations followed by another high-level meeting in September. The talks were led on the U.S. side by Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and on the Russian side by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.
“We remain committed, even in times of tension, to ensuring predictability and reducing the risk of armed conflict and threat of nuclear war,” the State Department said in a statement. The two Presidents had agreed to resume strategic talks when they met in Geneva last month. “Today’s meeting in Geneva was the beginning of this dialogue with the Russian Federation,” it said. “The U.S. delegation discussed U.S. policy priorities and the current security environment, national perceptions of threats to strategic stability, prospects for new nuclear arms control, and the format for future Strategic Stability Dialogue sessions.”
