Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=05/02/01

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=RUSSIA / U-S MISSILES (S / 2ND UPDATE)

NUMBER=2-275585

BYLINE=SONJA PACE

DATELINE=MOSCOW

INTERNET=YES

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

/// UPDATES CR 2-275577, WITH FOREIGN MINISTER REACT ///

INTRO: Russia's foreign minister says his government is ready to discuss U-S defense concerns, but he says Russia remains adamant that the Anti-Ballistic Missile, or A-B-M, treaty signed by the two countries in 1972 must stay intact. V-O-A's Sonja Pace reports from Moscow.

TEXT: Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Russia is ready for consultations to hear the American position and set out its own.

Mr. Ivanov said Russia is ready to discuss American defense worries, but he also said Moscow continues to view the A-B-M treaty as a cornerstone of global security.

It was the first official Russian reaction to President Bush's call for replacing the A-B-M treaty and building a missile defense system to protect the United States and its allies from attacks by certain rogue states.

Moscow believes those concerns are exaggerated and that building the missile shield could lead to a new international arms race.

NEB/SP/KL/JWH