12Dec - Cornerstone of Peace Removed

[TonyGosling]

I'd not heard a whisper about this - clearly this is the price we have to pay for our so-called leaders ramping things up against Iran. Stop the psycopathic threats to Iran and let's KEEP the cornerstone.

see also Russia sends warning to the West

Russia suspends arms control pact

Russian President Vladimir Putin has suspended the application of a key Cold War arms control treaty.



Mr Putin signed a decree citing "exceptional circumstances" affecting security as the reason for the move.

Russia has been angered by US plans to base parts of a missile defence system in Poland and the Czech Republic.

The US said it was "disappointed" by Russia's decision but would "continue to have discussions with them in the coming months" on how to proceed.

The 1990 Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty (CFE) limits the number of heavy weapons deployed between the Atlantic Ocean and the Urals mountains.

The Russian suspension will become effective 150 days after other parties to the treaty have been notified, President Putin's decree says.

'Cornerstone'

The suspension is not a full-scale withdrawal - but it means that Russia will no longer permit inspections or exchange data on its deployments.

Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Kislyak said Moscow was not "shutting the door to dialogue".


THE CFE TREATY
- Cornerstone of European security
- Limits amount of key military equipment in designated area
- Negotiated by Nato and ex-Warsaw Pact member states
- Signed in 1990
- Came into force in 1992
- Revised 1999 version never ratified by Nato

"We have submitted to our partners proposals on ways out of the situation. And we continue to wait for a constructive reaction," Mr Kislyak said.

A Nato spokesman echoed White House sentiments, saying the alliance "regretted" Russia's decision.

"The allies consider this treaty to be an important cornerstone of European security," James Appathurai said.

He added that the move was "a disappointing step in the wrong direction".

Nato allies in Eastern Europe also expressed "regret" at the Russian decision.

"We hope that Russia will stop taking unilateral steps and will return to the negotiating table because negotiations, not threats, can produce positive results," said a spokeswoman for the Czech foreign ministry.

Poland's Deputy Foreign Minister Witold Waszczykowski said the decision was "disconcerting" and might be related to the planned missile defence system.

But it could also be influenced by Russia's internal politics - as a display of strength ahead of presidential elections in 2008, Mr Waszczykowski said.

Worsening ties

Russia's suspension of its application of the treaty is yet another sign of a worsening relationship between the US and Russia, says the BBC's diplomatic correspondent, Jonathan Marcus.

An informal meeting earlier in July at the Bush family's Maine home seems to have done very little to improve ties between the two leaders, he says.

It is also yet one more sign of a more assertive Russian foreign policy, our diplomatic correspondent says.

The CFE agreement of 1990 was one of the most significant arms control agreements of the Cold War years.

It set strict limits on the number of offensive weapons - battle tanks, combat aircraft, heavy artillery - that the members of the Warsaw Pact and Nato could deploy in Europe, stretching from the Atlantic to the Urals.

In the wake of the collapse of communism, the treaty was revised in 1999, in part to address Russian concerns.

But this revised treaty has never been ratified by the Nato countries who want Russia to withdraw all of its forces from two breakaway regions with Russian-speaking majorities - Abkhazia in Georgia and Trans-Dniester in Moldova.

"The CFE treaty and missile defence are the two major irritants between Russia and the West. It would have been easy, it still is easy, I think Nato allies feel, to move closer to ratifying the CFE treaty," the Nato spokesman added.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6898690.stm
Published: 2007/07/14 20:47:28 GMT

[TonyGosling]

12th December is D-DAY then!

Russia not to tolerate NATO moves
Tue, 20 Nov 2007 19:01:05

The Russian president warns NATO that it will not tolerate any attempts to increase the alliance's military presence near its borders.

President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that if NATO violates its earlier agreements with Russia on a key arms control accord, it will reserve the right to abandon its commitment to its bilateral agreements with NATO members.

"In violation of previous agreements, certain member countries of the NATO alliance are increasing their resources next to our borders,” the Russian leader said. "Russia cannot remain indifferent to the clear muscle-flexing."
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=31890&sectionid=351020602


Russia suspends Cold War treaty
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=31274&sectionid=351020602
Fri, 16 Nov 2007 13:34:22
Russia has announced it will suspend its compliance with the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) treaty signed during the Cold War.

CFE is a key European arms control treaty signed between NATO and the Warsaw Pact members which has regulated the deployment of troops and the monitoring of weapons systems on the continent since 1990.

Russia is not withdrawing from the treaty altogether, merely suspending its participation, Itar-Tass quoted Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as saying on Thursday.

Lavrov maintains that whilst Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan have ratified the version of the treaty adapted to modern realities, NATO countries have stalled on the issue.

December 12, 2007 has been announced as date on which Moscow will suspend its observance of the treaty.