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Putin Proposes Anti-Missile Shield With EU, NATO
Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed Monday a joint anti-missile shield with the European Union (EU) and NATO in response to the United States insistence on pushing ahead with its own anti-missile system.
After talks with Italian Prime Minister Giuliano Amato, Putin who arrived Monday afternoon told reporters that the proposal would avoid upsetting the balance of forces, while also giving all European countries a "100 percent guarantee" of security with the support of their American partner.
In their summit in Moscow at the weekend, Putin and U.S. President Bill Clinton signed agreements to eliminate enriched plutonium from nuclear warheads and set up a joint missile launch monitoring center.
But Putin refused to accept the amendment of the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) treaty which Clinton needs to go ahead with the planned U.S. anti-missile shield.
In his long talk with Amato, Putin said close attention was given to international security.
"I asked Amato to study the question more closely with his European colleagues," Putin reported.
"We know that many in Europe and the world are concerned about maintaining the ABM agreement signed in 1972," said the Russian president, "we share this viewpoint."
He also thanked the European leaders for their support of international nuclear arms limitation agreements such as the comprehensive test ban treaty, the reduction of tactical nuclear weapons and the nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
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