MOSCOW. Feb 8 (Interfax) - Moscow has explained to Washington through diplomatic channels that it rejects the U.S. claims of Moscow's alleged failure to honor the New START treaty, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website on Wednesday.
"The Russian side categorically rejects the claims of U.S. representatives regarding our country's 'incompliance' with the provisions of the New START treaty. Detailed official explanations of the matter have been relayed to the U.S. side through diplomatic channels," the ministry said.
Moscow has no intention "to leave the hostile U.S. actions, which question the relevance of a number of key provisions of the New START treaty, without a proper response," it said.
The ministry also commented on Washington's aspiration to resume bilateral inspections under the New START treaty.
"As for the suspended inspections under the New START treaty, that the standard inspection procedures have been disrupted precisely by actions of the U.S. side. The anti-Russian restrictions imposed by Washington actually blocked the capacity of the Russian Federation for conducting unhampered inspections in the U.S. territory, which obviously gave unilateral advantages to the U.S. side," the ministry said.
Russia's decision to suspend inspections of its strategic sites does not contravene the New START treaty, it said.
"The aggressive course of Washington, which openly declares the goal of Russia's 'strategic defeat' in Ukraine while supplying it with increasing amounts of weapons and sending instructors/mercenaries/servicemen from the U.S. and other NATO countries, as well as the confrontation instigated by the incumbent U.S. administration in every area of bilateral interstate relations, makes business as usual impossible," the ministry said.
"In fact, the United States has been waging a total hybrid war on Russia, which is fraught with a real risk of direct military confrontation between the two nuclear powers," it said.
"Against this backdrop, Washington's demands that inspections resume at Russian strategic offensive weapon sites no matter what are openly cynical, especially as the Kiev regime has tried to hit them with the obvious military-technical, information and intelligence support from the United States," the ministry said.
"We would like to emphasize that any 'positive messages' or 'steps forward' in matters highlighted by the United States in the context of the New START treaty's fulfillment would be unjustified, untimely and inappropriate until Washington reviews its hostile attitude towards Russia and abandons the policy of escalating threats to our national security. In particular, this applies to sessions of the Bilateral Consultative Commission under this treaty," it said.
The ministry also noted that Russia "reaffirms its invariable commitment to the New START treaty as an important instrument of ensuring international security and stability." "We urge the United States to realize the lack of an alternative to building relations with our country on the basis of fundamental principles of equality and mutual account of interests. Washington should draw relevant practical conclusions from the emerging situation," it said.