RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin suspended Moscow’s participation in the last remaining nuclear arms control pact with the United States today.

During his State of the Nation speech, President Putin said: “I am forced to announce today that Russia is suspending its participation in the strategic offensive arms treaty.”

The New START nuclear arms reduction treaty, signed by the two countries in 2010, called for the number of strategic nuclear missile launchers to be halved.

He said that Russia must stand ready to resume nuclear weapons tests if the US does so. 

Mr Putin said that as the US and Nato have stated their objective is to strategically defeat Russia, it would be “totally absurd” to allow the West to inspect Russian controlled nuclear facilities.

The Russian president accused Western leaders of discussing the supply of nuclear weapons to Ukraine before Russia’s “special military operation.”

He said that Nato was setting up military bases and biological laboratories on Russian borders.

Of the US, he said: “No other country in the world has as many foreign military bases.

“They have hundreds of military bases around the world, the whole planet is dotted with their bases.”

Hours later, US President Joe Biden gave a speech in the Polish capital Warsaw ahead of the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Mr Biden said: “A year ago the world was bracing for the fall of Kiev — which stands tall, proud and, most importantly, free.”

He said that the “whole world was tested in its response to the war with Russia and the world would not look the other way.”

The US leader said that Mr Putin “thought Nato would fracture and divide. Instead, Nato is more united and more unified than ever before.”

The Russian leader was “confronted today with something he didn’t think was possible a year ago: the democracy of the world has grown stronger, not weaker.

“But the autocrats of the world have grown weaker, not stronger because in the moments of great upheaval and uncertainty knowing what you stand for is most important.”

“Ukraine will never be a victory for Russia.”

Mr Biden confirmed that the US and its allies are set to impose further sanctions this week, saying: “we will hold accountable those responsible for this war.”

The speeches underlined a battlefield stalemate, with neither Russia nor the US holding out any prospect of peace talks.