CZECH REPUBLIC: U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev press conference after nuclear treaty signing

Record ID: 574728

  • Title: CZECH REPUBLIC: U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev press conference after nuclear treaty signing
  • Date: 9th April 2010
  • Summary: AUDIENCE IN HALL STANDING MILITARY ON BALCONY VARIOUS OF OBAMA AND MEDVEDEV SIGNING DOCUMENTS (4 SHOTS) VARIOUS OF AUDIENCE MEDVEDEV AND OBAMA EXCHANGING SIGNED COPIES OF TREATY AUDIENCE
  • Embargoed: 24th April 2010 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Czech Republic
  • Country: Czech Republic
  • Topics: Defence / Military
  • Reuters ID: LVA39FC9UDUGCK016A87SWNIS900
  • Story Text: The United States and Russia signed a landmark strategic nuclear disarmament treaty on Thursday (April 8) and said new sanctions may be necessary to put pressure on Iran to renounce its nuclear ambitions.
    Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitry Medvedev signed the pact at a ceremony in the mediaeval Prague Castle after talks that covered nuclear security, Iran's atomic programme and an uprising in the Central Asian state of Kyrgyzstan, where both major powers have military bases.
    The treaty will cut strategic nuclear arsenals deployed by the former Cold War foes by 30 percent within seven years, but leave each with enough to destroy the other.
    Obama said the agreement had "ended the drift" in relations between Moscow and Washington and sent a strong signal that the two powers that together possess 90 percent of all atomic weapons were taking their disarmament obligations seriously.
    Both men said they hoped and expected the new treaty would be ratified this year.
    "Today is an important milestone for nuclear security and non-proliferation and for U.S.-Russia relations. It fulfills our common objective to negotiate a new strategic arms reduction treaty. It includes significant reductions in the nuclear weapons that we will deploy. It cuts our delivery vehicles by roughly half. It includes a comprehensive verification regime which allows us to further build trust. It enables both sides the flexibility to protect our security as well as America's unwavering commitment to the security of our European allies. And I look forward to working with the United States Senate to achieve ratification for this important treaty later this year," Obama said.
    Medvedev, mindful of past problems in winning approval in the treaty-shy U.S. Senate, said the ratification process should "proceed simultaneously".
    "This treaty can be long-lasting and effective only on the condition that there will be no significant growth and development of the missile defence systems abilities, which in the end could threaten Russia's strategic armed forces. This is the essence of Russia's statement made during the signing of the treaty and this will be made public. After the signing itself we view its ratification as the main goal and the U.S. president just said the same. It is very important not just to sign the treaty but to synchronise the process of its ratification."
    The U.S. president reaffirmed the long-term goal he set in a speech at the same Prague Castle a year ago to work towards a world without nuclear weapons and said Medvedev would visit the United States later this year to discuss further cooperation, including withdrawing short-range tactical nuclear weapons.
    "The new START treaty is an important first step forward, it is just one step on a longer journey. As I said last year in Prague, this treaty will set the stage for further cuts. And going forward, we hope to pursue discussions with Russia on reducing both our strategic and tactical weapons, including non-deployed weapons. President Medvedev and I have also agreed to expand our discussions on missile-defence. This will include regular exchanges of information about our threat assessments as well as the completion of a joint assessment of emerging ballistic missiles. And as these assessments are completed I look forward to launching a serious dialogue about Russian-American cooperation on missile defence."
    Medvedev said he regretted Tehran had not reacted to constructive proposals on its nuclear programme and the Security Council might have to take further sanctions, but they should be "smart" and not bring disaster on the Iranian people.
    "Unfortunately, Tehran does not react to the whole range of constructive compromise agreements which were offered to it and we cannot ignore it. So I don't exclude the possibility that the U.N. Security Council will have to discuss this issue once again. Our positon is well-known and I can once again pronounce it. Of course sanctions rarely lead to any results, though sometimes they are necessary. But in any case, these sanctions must be smart, aimed at only non-prolifiration, and not against the Iranian people. They should not lead to a humanitarian catastrophe."
    Obama said both countries would work together at the United Nations to pass sanctions on Iran.
    "Those nations that follow the rules will find greater security and opportunity. Those nations that refuse to meet their obligations will be isolated and denied the opportunity that comes with the international recognition. That includes accountability for those that break the rules, otherwise the NPT (Non-Proliferation Treaty) is just words on a page. That's why the United States and Russia are part of a coalition of nations insisting that the Islamic Republic of Iran face consequences because they have continually failed to meet their obligations. We are working together at the United Nations Security Council to pass strong sanctions on Iran."
    Analysts said the signing would help Obama build pressure on Tehran, along with the 47-nation nuclear summit in Washington and a meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao next week.
    Obama this week announced a shift in U.S. nuclear doctrine, pledging never to use atomic weapons against non-nuclear states, as he sought to build momentum for an April 12-13 nuclear security summit in Washington.
    The assurance applies only to countries in compliance with the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, so Iran and North Korea would not receive that commitment.
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