Russia & the United States Fail To Agree on Missile Defence System

14/05/2001| IslamWeb

CRAWFORD, Texas (Islamweb & News Agencies) - President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin failed to strike a deal Thursday on the issue that has divided them the most, U.S. plans for a national missile defense, even as they hailed a new era of warm U.S-Russian cooperation.But they agreed on a range of other issues.
Bush said that he and Putin had pledged to reduce nuclear weapons, discussed cooperation in the war on terrorism and in stopping the spread of weapons, and considered ``ways our economies can grow together.''
Speaking to students at Crawford High School, Bush cited ``a new relationship ... that will make our lives better.''
Putin, speaking through a translator, called Bush, ``A person who does what he says.''
Bush had hoped to win an agreement from Putin to abandon or modify the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty, which prohibits national missile defenses. Still, there had been little expectation that the meetings in Washington and on Bush's ranch would produce such a breakthrough.
Russia had opposed any effort to dismantle the 1972 treaty, which it views as a centerpiece for world strategic stability.
Bush has characterized the pact as a relic of the Cold War and has said the United States will walk away from it, if necessary. The Pentagon hopes to begin construction on a command and testing center for the system next spring in Alaska.
Despite Putin's reservations, Bush ``continues to believe he has got to move forward with the testing program in a robust way,'' Condoleezza Rice, Bush's national security adviser, said later.
She told reporters that Putin continues to believe that the ABM treaty should be left in place. ``We're soon going to run up against certain constraints of the treaty,'' she said.
Putin said he and Bush share a common goal to achieve security in the world and to protect against future threats. ``What we differ in is the ways and means we perceive that are suitable for reaching the same objective,'' Putin said.
While acknowledging the failure to agree on missile defense, Bush said, ``Our disagreements will not divide us as nations.''