The Hindu : Bush, Putin sign disarmament treaty

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, May 25, 2002

International

International

Bush, Putin sign disarmament treaty

MOSCOW May 24 . The U.S. President, George W. Bush, and the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, signed a landmark nuclear disarmament treaty today and hailed a new era in relations that the U.S. leader said would lead to ``incredible cooperation.''

The treaty, the first strategic arms reduction pact in nearly 10 years, obliges the U.S. and Russia to slash their nuclear arsenals by two-thirds to between 1,700 and 2,200 warheads over the next decade, bringing them down to their lowest level ever. Mr. Bush told his Russian host that the historic accord proved ``that we are friends, that we are going to cast aside old doubts, old suspicions and welcome a new era in relations between your great country and our country.''

``I am confident that this sets the stage for incredible cooperation that we've never had before between our two countries,'' Mr. Bush said, after the two leaders signed the Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty in the Kremlin's Andreyvsky Hall. The nuclear arms treaty and a separate strategic partnership accord signed along with a series of other cooperation accords underscored the new relationship between the former Cold War rivals in the wake of the September 11 attacks. Mr. Putin has wholeheartedly supported Mr. Bush in his war against terrorism and the new entente has generated benefits in almost every area.

``Today we are speaking about an absolutely new quality of our relationship, regarding questions of security, questions of reducing our strategic potentials and creating a new secure world,'' Mr. Putin said, after one-on-one talks with his U.S. counterpart. They also signed a joint statement on combating terrorism, in which they have mentioned their desire to closely interact with Shanghai Six, of which China is a key member along with Russia. The dangerous situation along the Indo-Pakistan border war was also discussed, Kremlin officials said.

PTI

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

International