“‘The collapse of New START would be a global disaster – and can be avoided at the stroke of a pen,’ said Derek Johnson, executive director of the international Global Zero movement, an international group that seeks to eliminate all nuclear weapons.”

William Hartung cites Global Zero’s Alternative Nuclear Posture Review as an example of how the U.S. could cut massive defense spending without compromising security.

“Allowing New START to end would be akin to ‘removing the nuclear guardrails,'” U.S. Chair of Global Zero Richard Burt tells Newsweek. “‘Failing to expand this would be a giant step backwards.'”

Global Zero, which advocates for the elimination of nuclear weapons, released a statement from Executive Director Derek Johnson marking the start of “a countdown to nuclear chaos.”

Global Zero CEO Derek Johnson issues a warning on the one-year deadline to extend New START: “‘Today marks a countdown to nuclear chaos.'”