21 March 2002
U.S., Russia Hold Third Session of Arms Reduction Negotiations
(Seek accord on more reductions for next U.S.-Russian summit) (530)
By Wendy Lubetkin
Washington File European Correspondent
Geneva -- U.S. and Russian negotiators "are making progress" on a
legally binding document on arms control reductions for signature by
Presidents Bush and Putin at their next summit, according to a senior
U.S. official.
The agreement would reduce the U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals to
between 1,700 and 2,200 strategic nuclear weapons, as announced by the
two presidents at the Washington/Crawford summit last November.
A U.S. inter-agency team headed by John R. Bolton, Under Secretary of
State for Arms Control and International Security, met in Geneva March
21 with Russian counterparts led by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
Georgy Mamedov.
The session held in Geneva is the third in what negotiators have
dubbed the "Bolton-Mamedov Channel." Two previous sessions were held
in Washington and Moscow. The Geneva talks are alternating between the
U.S. and Russian diplomatic missions near the United Nations, and will
continue for a second day on March 22.
Negotiators are working on a codification "of the agreements between
the two presidents on offensive nuclear weapons and also to make
progress on a political declaration on the new strategic framework,
which will be announced by the two presidents when President Bush goes
to Moscow in May," the official explained.
The aim is to have the documents ready for signature by U.S. President
George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin at their next
summit scheduled for May 23-26 in Moscow.
The United States wants the reductions to focus on the category of
warheads that pose the greatest immediate threat: operationally
deployed strategic nuclear warheads that are already on ICBMs, on
submarines, or associated with heavy bombers at heavy bomber bases.
A count based on "operationally deployed strategic nuclear warheads"
is different from the counting rules used for START I and START II
which applied the concept of "attribution," the official explained.
For example, under START I, a Russian SS-18 with a warhead capability
of 10 re-entry vehicles would count for 10 even if it only had a
single re-entry vehicle on it.
The new counting method will be a "completely accurate count of what
is available to be used immediately," the official said.
The official would not speculate on what the new agreement might
eventually be called, but the never-ratified START II treaty -- which
envisaged reductions to a level of 3000 to 3500 accountable warheads
-- will effectively disappear if a more far reaching new agreement is
successfully completed.
The START I treaty -- which limits the two sides to 6000 accountable
warheads and 1,600 deployed strategic nuclear delivery systems -- will
remain in effect.
The official dismissed a press report that the agreement might be
finalized at the end of the two-day Geneva meeting, saying additional
discussions would be necessary, including a meeting between Secretary
of State Colin Powell and Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov to be held in
early April.
(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
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