The Obama administration is set to propose resuming U.S.-Russian arms control talks that could begin in a matter of months, along with other initiatives intended to strengthen strained relations between Washington and Moscow, the Washington Post reported today (see GSN, March 3).
(Mar. 4) -
U.S. President Barack Obama is seeking expanded cooperation with Russia on arms control and nonproliferation issues (Mandel Ngan/Getty Images).
President Barack Obama intends to offer the proposals to his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, in April at their first meeting. Among the proposals are re-establishing the NATO-Russia Council, increasing economic cooperation, and reviewing the U.S. plan to deploy missile defenses in Eastern Europe.
The Kremlin has been an outspoken opponent of the Bush administration effort to place missile shield bases in Poland and the Czech Republic, characterizing the initiative as a threat to Russian strategic security.
Obama sent a letter to Medvedev last month asserting that the European system would not be needed if Iran could be persuaded to curb its ballistic missile and sensitive nuclear operations (see GSN, March 3). Yesterday, he rejected any idea that the message had offered to at least delay the missile defense plan if Russia stepped up its efforts to pressure Iran (Karen DeYoung, Washington Post, March 4).
An article in the New York Times "didn't accurately characterize the letter," Obama said yesterday.
"The way it got characterized I think was as some sort of quid pro quo," he said. "It was simply a statement of fact that I've made previously, which is that the missile defense program, to the extent that it is deployed, is designed to deal with not a Russian threat but an Iranian threat" (Jo Biddle, Agence France-Presse/Yahoo!News, March 3).
The letter addressed "a whole range of issues, from nuclear proliferation to how we are going to deal with a set of common security concerns along the Afghan border and terrorism," Obama said. "My hope is that we can have a constructive relationship where, based on common respect and mutual interest, we can move forward."
While he expressed appreciation for the letter, Medvedev said yesterday that its level of detail on missile defense was "a disappointment" and that he hoped for "specific proposals" during his April 2 meeting with Obama in London, the Post reported.
Establishing a group of negotiators to hammer out a replacement for the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty is likely to take precedence over the missile defense issue. The pact that limits deployment of nuclear warheads and delivery vehicles expires at the end of 2009. Moscow and Washington both want to begin work on a new pact, though Obama might be looking for a more aggressive arms reduction that Medvedev, the Post reported.
It might be hard to press ahead on some matters, some experts said, while others expressed concern that Obama might be willing to give up too much in order to draw Russia closer to the United States. Russia "will use our desire to bring the temperature down" to gain benefits, according to Robert Kagan of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (DeYoung, Washington Post).
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the U.S. position on the European missile shield remained the same, AFP reported.
"I told the Russians a year ago that if there were no Iranian missile threat, that there would be no need for ... the third missile defense site in Europe," he said. "I don't think at all that this is trying to put the Russians on the spot. I think it is trying to reopen a dialogue and say, we are open to talking with you about how we address this problem" (Biddle, AFP).
There has been concern in Prague and Warsaw that Washington might back out of the missile defense deals, leaving them nothing for their trouble and with increased tensions with Moscow, the Times reported.
Gates said he told Polish Prime Minister that the Obama administration needed "a little time" to assess its relations with Russia.
“My sense is that the Poles were somewhat reassured,” he said. “They obviously would like to see us move forward quickly and strongly.”
It is not yet possible to know the reasonable level of worry in the Czech Republic, said defense analyst Nikola Hynek of the Institute of International Relations.
“Obama is not putting missile defense in the deep freeze as such,” he said. “He is putting it in the fridge. It means it can be taken out, depending on Russia" (Ellen Barry, New York Times, March 4).