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 | Wednesday, April 26, 2000, updated at 14:12(GMT+8) | ||||||||||||
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Russia Defends ABMRussia said Tuesday the preservation of the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM) between the United States and the Soviet Union is the only way leading to negotiations for further reductions of strategic weapons."The compliance with the ABM Treaty in its present form without any modifications is a prerequisite for further negotiations on nuclear disarmament," Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov told a U.N. conference to review the implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). The NPT, seen as a cornerstone in arms reduction treaties, went into force in 1970. It bars nuclear weapon states from transferring nuclear weapons to non-nuclear-weapon states and prohibits non-nuclear-weapon states from manufacturing and receiving such arms. Signatories to the NPT, now numbering 187, meet every five years to review progress and set new objectives. The 2000 review, which opened Monday, is the first of its kind since the treaty became indefinite in the 1995 review. There is "a dangerous tendency" to undermine the existing system of strategic stability and there are attempts to build national stability at the expense of other states, said Ivanov, referring to the development of the National Missile Defense (NMD) system by the U.S., the largest nuclear power with the most advanced nuclear weapons in the world. "The collapse of the ABM Treaty would, therefore, undermine the entirety of disarmament agreements concluded over the last 30 years," he warned. According to the indefinite ABM Treaty, the U.S. and Russia are committed to not manufacturing, testing or deploying anti-ballistic missiles in any environment. The U.S. NMD system, which aims at protecting the U.S. territory from any ballistic missile attacks, has been criticized by Russia as a move running against the ABM and challenging international strategic stability. Ivanov said Russia is prepared "to engage in the broadest consultations" on the ABM issue with the U.S. and multilaterally. Russia, the second biggest nuclear power, has threatened to withdraw from strategic arms reduction talks (START II) with the U.S. if Washington would go ahead with NMD deployment. The minister said Moscow is resolved "to pursue a stage-by- stage and integral progress" of all nuclear powers towards nuclear disarmament "without any artificial delays or undue hurry."
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