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The U.S. Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice,
and Defense Secretary, Robert Gates, have finished defence talks with
their Russian counterparts, Sergey Lavrov and Anatoly Serdyukov, in
Moscow. The U.S. missile defence shield in Europe topped the agenda.
The U.S. officials pledged to keep relations with Russia as friendly as possible after President Putin steps down next month.
However, no serious breakthrough was reached on the main issue. During
the talks the U.S. confirmed its plans to deploy the anti-missile
shield in Europe.
Rober Gates once again stressed that the shield is not a threat to
Russia’s security, while Russia once again put forward the alternative,
which is the joint use of Gabala radar base in Azerbaijan. Further
consultations will continue.
"As far as missile defense is concerned, Russia and the U.S. want to resolve these issues in close cooperation with each other and Europe, heeding each other's interests," Sergei Lavrov said.
As for the CEF (Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty), from which
Russia has withdrawn, both sides agreed that that this document has to
be legally binding.
In conclusion Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said that there
are many points of contention between Russia and the U.S., but the
positive result of the current talks is that both countries are eager
to follow the course for constructive dialogue set by outgoing
presidents Putin and Bush.
Russia Today
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