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Russia, U.S. confirm intention to reduce strategic arms |
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07:44, July 04, 2007 |
Russia and the United States have confirmed their intention to reduce their strategic offensive weapons to a minimal level and develop relevant agreements, the RIA Novosti news agency reported on Tuesday.
Moscow and Washington will draft agreements on the succession and predictability of strategic offensive forces after the existing START strategic weapons agreement expires on Dec. 5, 2009,Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of StateCondoleezza Rice said in a joint statement issued on Tuesday.
"Russia and the United States state again their intention to continue with the reduction of strategic offensive weapons down tothe possibly lowest level, which would guarantee national securityand alliance obligations," RIA quoted the statement as saying.
Belarus, Kazakhstan and Ukraine have totally disarmed their strategic weapons after the five-nation protocol was first inked in 1991. The United States and Russia have reduced the number of delivery vehicles to 1,600 units, with no more than 6,000 warheads.
In another statement, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his U.S. counterpart, George W. Bush, said that the two countries haveinitiated a new format of cooperation with countries that seek civilian nuclear energy and observe the non-proliferation regime, RIA said.
Putin and Bush suggested the construction of modern and safe reactors for both energy and research purpose, support national and multilateral programs that would elaborate requirements to nuclear reactors, and appeal for easier access to financial resources in the building of nuclear power plants, Itar-Tass news agency reported.
Those statements were issued after the two presidents' meetingsat Kennebunkport, Maine, which started on Sunday.
Source: Xinhua
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