The United States and Russia have finalised an agreement to extend until 2026 a treaty limiting their stockpiles of nuclear weapons.

The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START Treaty), which was due to expire on Friday, imposes limits on Russian and US intercontinental missiles and bombers, but does not cover new types of weapons.

Both Washington and Moscow cast the extension as a victory, saying it would provide stability and transparency on nuclear issues while acknowledging some of their disagreements.

“Even as we work with Russia to advance U.S. interests, so too will we work to hold Russia to account for adversarial actions as well as its human rights abuses”, - Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.

Blinken said Washington would use the five-year extension to pursue additional limits on all of Russia’s nuclear weapons.

“President [Joe] Biden has made clear that the New START Treaty extension is only the beginning of our efforts to address 21st Century security challenges”, - he added.