US voices 'concern' over Russian transparency at security talks

The United States and Russia held security talks in Geneva on Wednesday, with the US side expressing "concern" over what it termed Moscow's lacking "transparency" regarding certain nuclear weapon deployments.

Moscow has accused Washington of eroding the global arms control regime by backing away from key treaties, while the US has said it was forced to act following repeated Russian violations.

The talks in Geneva included deputy US Secretary of State, John Sullivan and Under Secretary for Arms Control Andrea Thompson, with the Russian delegation led by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.

"The delegations discussed their respective national strategic policies as a means to reduce misunderstandings and misperceptions on a range of key security issues," the State Department said in a press release.

"The US delegation also underscored concerns about Russia's development and deployment of non-strategic nuclear weapons and lack of transparency with regard to existing obligations," it added.

Sullivan and Thompson are due to head to Brussels to brief NATO on the talks. Moscow suspended participation in the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty in March after President Donald Trump's White House announced it would ditch the key agreement for alleged Russian violations of the terms.

The sides also appear at loggerheads over the extension of the New START treaty which caps the number of nuclear warheads well below Cold War limits and expires in 2021.