Strategic Prudence and Extending New START

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

55% : To its credit, the 2026 National Defense Strategy outlines a shift toward "respectful relations" with China and broadening military-to-military communications with the People's Liberation Army to ensure deescalation and strategic stability.Simultaneously, the National Defense Strategy emphasizes nuclear force modernization, a goal that remains compatible with maintaining New START's numerical constraints.
53% : The structure of Russia's military-industrial complex, which emphasizes autarky and state control, allows Russia to rapidly scale up production with less regard for profit motives.Meanwhile, the U.S. defense industry remains captured by contractors who prioritize shareholder returns over strategic capacity.
49% : The international security landscape stands at a critical juncture as the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START, approaches its expiration on Feb. 5, 2026.
33% : In his first term, Trump tried and failed to bring China into nuclear arms reduction talks when the U.S. and Russia were negotiating an extension of New START.

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