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http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article7091617.ece
April 8, 2010
Deborah Haynes, Defence Editor, in Prague
The United States and Russia signed a historic treaty today to shrink stockpiles of nuclear weapons in a new show of co-operation designed to halt the spread of atomic bombs, particularly to Iran.
President Obama, who attended the signing ceremony in Prague with President Medvedev, his Russian counterpart, said “ramped up” negotiations were expected in the coming days over Tehran’s nuclear ambitions and that they were expected to produce another set of tough sanctions against the Islamist regime.
The two leaders also indicated a willingness to work together to overcome Russian fears about a US plan to build a missile defence shield in Europe – a key obstacle in talks on disarmament. Mr Medvedev suggested that Moscow could help Washington to provide a global anti-missile defence.
Adding to a sense that relations have been “reset”, the former Cold War foes said they wanted to strengthen ties in other areas, such as trade and investment, and build on a friendship that has flourished between Mr Medvedev and Mr Obama.
“Today is an important milestone for nuclear security and non-proliferation and for US-Russia relations,” the American leader said, speaking in a hall in Prague Castle, where the ceremony was held.
A year ago, Mr Obama gave a speech inside the same castle, setting out his vision for a world without nuclear weapons. “This is a long-term goal, one that may not even be achieved in my lifetime.
"But I believed then as I do now that the pursuit of that goal will move us further beyond the Cold War, strengthen the global non-proliferation regime and make the United States and the world safer.”
The Russian President, standing at a podium next to Mr Obama, was similarly upbeat, marking a dramatic turnaround in Russia-US relations over the past 12 months when the two leaders launched negotiations on the treaty, following several years of deteriorating links under President Bush. In that time, the two men have spoken 15 times on the telephone.
“I believe that this signature will open a new page for cooperation between our two countries,” Mr Medvedev said.
Smiling and at moments chuckling in an overt show of friendship, the pair signed the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (Start), which is seen as the first concrete foreign policy achievement by Mr Obama since he took office.
The agreement requires Moscow and Washington – holders of more than 90 per cent of the world's nuclear weapons – to slash their respective arsenals by about a third and reduce launchers by a half within seven years.
The pact, which was already delayed because of difficulties in negotiations, could yet be undermined if either side fails to ratify the text, though the United States and Russia appeared confident of ratification this year.
They also looked forward to starting work on another treaty that goes even further in cutting both countries’ nuclear arsenals.
Amid tight security, Mr Medvedev, who arrived in Prague yesterday, held closed-door talks with Mr Obama, who landed this morning, before the signing ceremony. The talks covered sanctions for Iran as well as other issues, including the uprising in Kyrgyzstan, where both powers have military bases.
Mr Medvedev outlined the sort of sanctions he would accept for Iran, avoiding anything that would cause a “humanitarian catastrophe”.
Out of the question was a total embargo on deliveries of refined oil products, according to Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s deputy foreign minister, who declined to give further details.
Mr Obama is pushing for a fourth round of sanctions for Tehran, which the West believes is intent upon becoming the world's next nuclear power. Iran insists its nuclear ambition is for civilian energy needs.
“We are going to start seeing some ramped up negotiations taking place in New York in the coming weeks and my expectation is that we are going to be able to secure strong, tough sanctions on Iran this spring,” the US President said.
He believed that the US-Russia pact helped to increase pressure on Iran by strengthening ties between Moscow and Washington and demonstrating to the world that the two powers were serious about keeping to their commitments to disarm under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Mr Obama will again advocate a tougher stance against the Iranian regime at a two-day summit of 47 world leaders that he is due to host in Washington next week. That meeting will focus on stopping the illicit trade in nuclear material and the need for stronger measures to protect vulnerable stockpiles.
It has been a busy few days for the American President on the nuclear front, coming on the back of a successful domestic battle over healthcare reform. The political achievements have given his Administration a new sense of confidence 15 months after he took office.
On Tuesday, Mr Obama unveiled a revamped nuclear strategy that for the first time declared the US would never use the bomb against a non-nuclear state provided it complied with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty – a caveat that leaves Iran and North Korea still vulnerable to attack.
In a shift that is also reflected in the latest treaty with Moscow, the new policy focuses on the spread of atomic weapons in regions such as the Middle East and South-East Asia or to terrorists rather than outdated fears of a nuclear conflict with Russia.
The new threat underlines the need to cut inflated Russian and US stockpiles of nuclear weapons, which no longer serve any purpose other than to add to the risk of dangerous material falling into the wrong hands.
The new US-Russia pact, which replaces the 1991 Start agreement that expired in December last year, reduces both sides' stockpile of deployed strategic warheads to 1,550 from a previous cap of 2,200.
Washington and Moscow must also cut the number of launchers, nuclear-armed missiles and heavy bombers in a step that will require vigorous verification procedures.
The treaty, which lasts for ten years and could be extended, still needs to be ratified by the US Congress and the Russian Duma. Mr Obama appears confident that US ratification will happen this year.
One lingering headache is Russian concern over US missile defences, an issue that has strained relations for years, even though Mr Obama scrapped a plan by his predecessor to base interceptor missiles in Poland and a radar station in the Czech Republic.
Russia viewed the system as a threat to its national security, rejecting American assurances that it was aimed at rogue states such as Iran.
It threatened to block the nuclear treaty last month after objecting to revised US plans that would involve elements of the shield being based in Bulgaria and Romania.
Analysts, however, said that Moscow was merely signalling that this issue must not be overlooked in future US-Russia disarmament pacts, which are expected to follow the latest treaty.
In a day of symbolic significance, Mr Obama and Mr Medvedev signed the agreement in the richly adorned Spanish Hall of Prague Castle, the official residence of the Czech President.
The men then had a formal lunch before the Russian leader was due to fly home to Moscow, while Mr Obama – in a sensitive balancing act – is due to host a dinner for leaders of 11 Central and Eastern European nations that had ties with the former Soviet Union.
They will be seeking assurance over concerns about slipping support from Washington as it courts closer ties with Moscow.
Sealing the pact will go some way to silence critics of Mr. Obama, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year in part for his vision of a world free of nuclear weapons.
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(if you having troubles, try posting your comment on this page or send an email to chronicle @ itbhuglobal.org)Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University
Varanasi 221005, UP