angel_luv
07-06-2009, 12:37 PM
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2009-07-05-obama_N.htm?csp=24&RM_Exclude=Juno
MOSCOW — President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev struck a preliminary deal Monday to reduce their nations' stockpiles of nuclear warheads to as few as 1,500 each, aiming toward the lowest levels of any U.S.-Russia arms control agreement.
The document signed by the two leaders at a Moscow summit, Obama's first in Russia, is meant to guide negotiators as the nations work toward a replacement pact for the START arms control agreement, which expires in December.
The joint understanding, signed after about three hours of talks at the Kremlin, also commits the new treaty to lower each nation's longer-range missiles for delivering nuclear bombs to between 500 and 1,100.
Under current treaties, each country is allowed a maximum of 2,200 warheads and 1,600 launch vehicles.
A White House statement said the new treaty "will include effective verification measures."
"The new agreement will enhance the security of both the U.S. and Russia, as well as provide predictability and stability in strategic offensive forces," the statement said.
The leaders also announced several other deals meant to show progress toward resetting badly damaged U.S.-Russian relations. Those included Moscow allowing the United States to transport arms across its land and airspace into Afghanistan for the war there. The White House says the deal will save the U.S. $133 million a year, by waiving transit fees and shortening flying time.
They outlined other ways to work together to help stabilize Afghanistan, including increasing assistance to the Afghan army and police and training counternarcotics personnel. A joint statement said the United States and Russia welcomed increased international support for upcoming Afghan elections and they were prepared to help Afghanistan and Pakistan work together against the "common threats of terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking."
Other side agreements include reviving a joint commission to try to account for missing service members of both countries dating back to World War II and new cooperation on public health issues.
"The United States and Russia have more in common than they have differences," Obama said as he and Medvedev first sat down in an ornate Kremlin room.
His host launched the high-stakes summit with similar good will.
"We'll have a full-fledged discussion of our relations between our two countries, closing some of the pages of the past and opening some of the pages of the future," Medvedev said, through a translator.
Obama arrived in Moscow for a two-day visit in an effort to "reset" relations with Russia after years of tension. Besides revising the START, Obama also wants Russia's help to curb the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea.
"The main thing that I want to communicate to Russian leadership and the Russian people is America's respect for Russia," Obama told Russian television this weekend. "We want to deal as equals."
BACKGROUND: Post-Cold War ties with Kremlin still chilly
Hitting the reset button won't be easy. Charles Kupchan, an international relations specialist at Georgetown University, said there have been several "mixed messages" sent by the Kremlin. "The big unknown," he said, "is whether the Russians are ready to do business."
Gary Samore, the top arms control official with the National Security Council, said Sunday details need to be worked out on how many long-range weapons to cut and how to verify those reductions. The U.S. and Russia hold more than 90% of the world's nuclear weapons. Samore said he believes Obama and Medvedev will move forward: "We think the summit will register progress toward an agreement."
One obstacle is Russian objections to U.S. plans for a missile defense system near its borders in Poland and the Czech Republic.
Medvedev told Italian media on Sunday that the Bush administration was "very hard-headed" about backing the system but believes the Obama administration "is ready to discuss" Russia's concerns. "Then we can agree on the basic foundations of a new START treaty and agree at the same time on how we will approach missile defense," he said.
The U.S. and Russia fell out over the Iraq war and the Russian war in Georgia, each side accusing the other of irresponsible behavior.
Russia also has balked at tougher sanctions on Iran, an economic ally. Medvedev called Iran's disputed presidential election of June 12 and the government's crackdown on protesters an "internal affair." Obama questioned the legitimacy of Iran's election and condemned recent violence.
In his interview, Medvedev called Iran "a partner," but said nuclear weapons "pose a threat" to all neighbors. He also said he will talk with Obama about letting the U.S. use Russian air space to deliver supplies to Afghanistan.
Obama meets separately with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, whom he said has "one foot in the old ways of doing business."
Contributing: David Jackson, USA TODAY
MOSCOW — President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev struck a preliminary deal Monday to reduce their nations' stockpiles of nuclear warheads to as few as 1,500 each, aiming toward the lowest levels of any U.S.-Russia arms control agreement.
The document signed by the two leaders at a Moscow summit, Obama's first in Russia, is meant to guide negotiators as the nations work toward a replacement pact for the START arms control agreement, which expires in December.
The joint understanding, signed after about three hours of talks at the Kremlin, also commits the new treaty to lower each nation's longer-range missiles for delivering nuclear bombs to between 500 and 1,100.
Under current treaties, each country is allowed a maximum of 2,200 warheads and 1,600 launch vehicles.
A White House statement said the new treaty "will include effective verification measures."
"The new agreement will enhance the security of both the U.S. and Russia, as well as provide predictability and stability in strategic offensive forces," the statement said.
The leaders also announced several other deals meant to show progress toward resetting badly damaged U.S.-Russian relations. Those included Moscow allowing the United States to transport arms across its land and airspace into Afghanistan for the war there. The White House says the deal will save the U.S. $133 million a year, by waiving transit fees and shortening flying time.
They outlined other ways to work together to help stabilize Afghanistan, including increasing assistance to the Afghan army and police and training counternarcotics personnel. A joint statement said the United States and Russia welcomed increased international support for upcoming Afghan elections and they were prepared to help Afghanistan and Pakistan work together against the "common threats of terrorism, extremism and drug trafficking."
Other side agreements include reviving a joint commission to try to account for missing service members of both countries dating back to World War II and new cooperation on public health issues.
"The United States and Russia have more in common than they have differences," Obama said as he and Medvedev first sat down in an ornate Kremlin room.
His host launched the high-stakes summit with similar good will.
"We'll have a full-fledged discussion of our relations between our two countries, closing some of the pages of the past and opening some of the pages of the future," Medvedev said, through a translator.
Obama arrived in Moscow for a two-day visit in an effort to "reset" relations with Russia after years of tension. Besides revising the START, Obama also wants Russia's help to curb the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea.
"The main thing that I want to communicate to Russian leadership and the Russian people is America's respect for Russia," Obama told Russian television this weekend. "We want to deal as equals."
BACKGROUND: Post-Cold War ties with Kremlin still chilly
Hitting the reset button won't be easy. Charles Kupchan, an international relations specialist at Georgetown University, said there have been several "mixed messages" sent by the Kremlin. "The big unknown," he said, "is whether the Russians are ready to do business."
Gary Samore, the top arms control official with the National Security Council, said Sunday details need to be worked out on how many long-range weapons to cut and how to verify those reductions. The U.S. and Russia hold more than 90% of the world's nuclear weapons. Samore said he believes Obama and Medvedev will move forward: "We think the summit will register progress toward an agreement."
One obstacle is Russian objections to U.S. plans for a missile defense system near its borders in Poland and the Czech Republic.
Medvedev told Italian media on Sunday that the Bush administration was "very hard-headed" about backing the system but believes the Obama administration "is ready to discuss" Russia's concerns. "Then we can agree on the basic foundations of a new START treaty and agree at the same time on how we will approach missile defense," he said.
The U.S. and Russia fell out over the Iraq war and the Russian war in Georgia, each side accusing the other of irresponsible behavior.
Russia also has balked at tougher sanctions on Iran, an economic ally. Medvedev called Iran's disputed presidential election of June 12 and the government's crackdown on protesters an "internal affair." Obama questioned the legitimacy of Iran's election and condemned recent violence.
In his interview, Medvedev called Iran "a partner," but said nuclear weapons "pose a threat" to all neighbors. He also said he will talk with Obama about letting the U.S. use Russian air space to deliver supplies to Afghanistan.
Obama meets separately with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, whom he said has "one foot in the old ways of doing business."
Contributing: David Jackson, USA TODAY