DATE=6/9/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=CLINTON-PUTIN (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-263327
BYLINE=DAVID GOLLUST
DATELINE=WHITE HOUSE
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: President Clinton has had a follow-up telephone
conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on their
Moscow summit meeting last weekend, and he is sending
Defense Secretary William Cohen to Moscow early next week
for more talks on arms control, including missile defenses.
VOA's David Gollust reports from the White House.
TEXT: The Moscow summit left the two powers no closer
together on their basic disagreement over U-S anti-missile
efforts. But the pace of dialogue is clearly on the
increase, as evidenced by Friday's telephone discussion
initiated by President Putin.
Russia contends the missile defense system being considered
by the Clinton administration would violate the 1972 anti-
ballistic missile treaty. It has refused to consider
amendments to accommodate the U-S program, which Washington
insists would be aimed not at Russia's offensive arsenal
but weapons fired by North Korea or other so-called "rogue
states."
However, at the summit President Putin did acknowledge the
existence of a rogue-state threat, and this week he
proposed cooperation with NATO on an alternate program for
the European region that would shoot down offending
missiles moments after launch.
White House spokesman Joe Lockhart said the Putin-Clinton
phone conversation lasted only 15 minutes and could not be
described as a detailed arms control discussion. But he
said President Putin raised some ideas on the missile
defense issue and looks forward to meeting Secretary Cohen
in Moscow Monday.
Mr. Lockhart said the defense chief, for his part, would
again try to re-assure Moscow about the U-S anti-missile
plan - on which the president is to make a deployment
decision in the next few months:
/// LOCKHART ACT ///
I think he's prepared to lay out what the President's
thinking is, where the Pentagon is. Obviously this is
a decision that has not been made yet, based on the
four criteria that the President has laid out. But I
think Secretary Cohen is in a good position to allay
any concerns the Russians may have.
/// END ACT///
Mr. Lockhart said the telephone conversation did not touch
on Mr. Putin's plan, announced Thursday, to make an
unprecedented visit to North Korea next month.
A Russian spokesman said the two presidents discussed steps
needed to implement agreements made at the summit,
including setting up a joint missile-launch detection
system and destroying tons of plutonium stockpiled by both
sides.
The two leaders are expected to meet three more times this
year on the sidelines of international conferences - their
next encounter is due late next month at the summit of
leading industrialized nations in Japan. (Signed)
NEB/DAG/PW
09-Jun-2000 13:31 PM EDT (09-Jun-2000 1731 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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