Russia should wait until the U.S.-led war in Iraq is resolved to begin the ratification process of the U.S.-Russian Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said today (see GSN, March 19).

“Maybe now is not the right moment psychologically to bring this document up for ratification,” Ivanov told members of the Federation Council, the upper house of the Russian Parliament.  “If we wait for some time, and concentrate all our efforts on ending the war and switching over to a political settlement (of the Iraq crisis), then at a more quiet moment we can quickly deal with this issue,” he added.

Ivanov said his support for delaying the treaty’s ratification did not mean he opposed the treaty itself.

“This treaty answers Russia’s interests.  The Foreign Ministry believes that this document should be ratified and we will present it for a ratification,” Ivanov said (Vladimir Isachenkov, Associated Press/Yahoo.com, March 26).

For further information, see:

U.S.-Russia Nuclear Reduction Treaty Text (U.S. State Department)

Bush Announces Moscow Treaty

U.S. State Department Fact Sheet on Moscow Treaty

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