Ivanov Deplores US Senate Rejection of CTBT

　　Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov on October 16 told US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright that that the US Senate's rejection of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty of nuclear weapons (CTBT) had raised obstacles to disarmament.

　　In an telephone conversation, Ivanov and Albright said Russia and the United States considered the accord crucial to world security and stability and promised to put the treaty into force as soon as possible, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.

　　The two also discussed the prospects for a Russian-US dialogue on the third stage of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START III), the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and the adaptation of the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty, the Interfax news agency reported.

　　Ivanov also briefed Albright on Russia's current military operation in the breakaway republic Chechnya, Interfax said. (Xinhua)