Russia is free to define the structure of its nuclear forces

The signing of the Treaty on Strategic Arms Reductions by Vladimir Putin and George W.Bush "fixes the balance of interests of Russia and the USA as applied to their new partnership," believes Vladislav Reznik, a deputy leader of the Unity faction in the State Duma and a Deputy Chairman of the Duma Budget Committee.

The point at issue is that "the sides have agreed to substantially reduce the number of warheads in their possession, which allows them to reduce the confrontation threshold," said the deputy. "All this helps us to strengthen strategic stability." Besides, "Russia is now free to define the structure of its nuclear forces," because that "corrects the mistakes made while negotiating for the first Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and enhances the reliability of Russian nuclear forces," went on Reznik.

It is equally important that arms control -- "a priority issue for Russia" -- has acquired a new legal framework. "The newly signed Treaty lays down a certain parity and also opens up new vistas for further consultations in the sphere of strategic stability," stressed the deputy.