Global General
Nuke treaty may 'reset' US, Russia ties
By Cheng Guangjin (China Daily)
Updated: 2010-03-26 07:50
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Experts say US may use the arms cut as bargain chip ahead of two key summits
BEIJING - A nuclear arms reduction treaty, which is likely to be signed soon by Cold War-era rivals US and Russia, is an indication of a "reset" in relations between the two powers, and will serve as a bargain chip for the US during two key upcoming nuclear summits, analysts said on Thursday.
"The treaty benefits both sides," said Shi Yinhong, an expert on American studies at the Renmin University. "The US will realize its purpose in political propaganda, and Russia can relax from the huge costs of maintaining a big arsenal."
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But "there are still some things that need to be worked out," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs was quoted by Reuters on Wednesday.
If the treaty is signed early next month, it will come ahead of the Nuclear Security Summit on April 12-13 and the Review Conference of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) to be held in May in Washington.
"The treaty will help create momentum for these two key meetings," said Guo Xiaobing, an expert on arms control at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations.
However, expectations that the treaty would lead to massive reduction in nuclear arsenal on both sides should be tamped down as it has already been mapped out clearly, Guo said.
Last July, the two leaders agreed that the fresh treaty would limit operationally deployed nuclear warheads to 1,500-1,675, with a more specific limit to be determined in talks, cutting from current levels of 2,200-2,700.
"But it sets up a framework for much deeper cuts in future, and provides detailed verification and procedures to ensure that the cuts can be checked," Guo said. "This will promote the whole process of nuclear arms reduction and nonproliferation."
In the short term, the treaty is not likely to pressure other nuclear powers, as no one has a nuclear arsenal comparable to the US or Russia, who together hold 95 percent of the world's nuclear arms, Guo said.
"We hope they are really committed to irreversibly cutting nuclear arms on a large scale," he said.
