Kiev is seeking to be the venue for the signing of a new nuclear
arms reduction treaty between Russia and the United States, RIA Novosti reported on Tuesday.
According to Kommersant, new Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych
made the suggestion to his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, during
his visit to Moscow on March 5.
The deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, Anna
German, told Kommersant on Monday that Moscow showed interest in
Ukraine's initiative. This issue will also be discussed on Tuesday in
Moscow between the countries' foreign ministers, Sergei Lavrov and
Kostyantyn Hryshchenko.
The talks will be held ahead of the upcoming visit by U.S. Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton to Moscow, during which she and Lavrov are
expected to coordinate the final details of the replacement to the
Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START 1), the paper said.
German said the bid to host the signing ceremony was part of
Yanukovych's efforts to position his country as a link between Russia
and the West.
"I believe this is a very interesting idea," Kommersant quoted
German as saying. "The Russian side responded with interest to it. If
the Americans are not against it, Ukraine will finally become the
bridge between the East and the West that our leader always speaks
about."
Russia and the United States have been negotiating the arms
reduction pact since the two countries' presidents met in April last
year, but finalizing a document has dragged on, with U.S. plans for
missile defense in Europe a particular sticking point.
Moscow wants to include a link between missile defenses and cuts in
offensive weapons, but the U.S. Senate is unlikely to ratify any
document formally linking the two issues.
