On February 5, 2026, New START, the last remaining bilateral strategic nuclear arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, officially expired, ending decades of cooperation between the two countries that aimed to make the world safer. On this episode of Talking Policy, host Lindsay Shingler sits down with Mike Albertson, a former federal employee who had a seat at the table during New START negotiations. Together, they discuss exactly what is lost following the treaty's formal expiration, the period of nuclear arms control erosion that led us here, and the prospects for future arms control agreements in a post-New START world, which now includes China as a major player.

This episode was recorded on February 20, 2026. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity.