Russia's and US's national flags at Vnukovo international airport in Moscow in 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

The talks, to be conducted by the Russian-US bilateral coordinating committee, were originally scheduled for November 29 to December 6 in Cairo, Egypt, to discuss resuming New START activities which were suspended in March 2020 because of COVID-19.

Russia suspended US inspections of its military sites under New START in early August, citing the US’s interference with Russia’s inspections.

The New START Treaty puts limits on the number of deployed strategic nuclear warheads at 1,550 for each country, a 30% reduction compared to 2002. In January 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to extend this treaty until 2026. Moscow and Washington agreed to allow up to 20 New START inspections by each country.