Japan vows nuke disarmament push as survivors decry U.S.-Russia treaty end

TOKYO - The Japanese government said Thursday it will work with Washington and urge engagement from powers including China on nuclear arms control and disarmament after the last remaining nuclear weapons treaty between the United States and Russia expired.

The expiration of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, known as New START, marks the first time in over five decades that the United States and Russia are without a legally binding framework to control their arsenals, raising the risk of a new global arms race and drawing an outcry from atomic bombing survivors and activists in Japan.