Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.news From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Yeltsin keen for START Date: Sun, 8 Nov 92 15:50:37 EST Message-ID: \SE A;WORLD \SS (WS) \HD Yeltsin keen for START \SH Ukraine resists giving up nukes \BY Larry Ryckman \CR ASSOCIATED PRESS \DT MOSCOW MOSCOW - President Boris Yeltsin, wasting no time after Bill Clinton's election, has immediately revived proposals for much deeper cuts in nuclear arms than the Bush administration has been willing to accept. But while Mr. Clinton considers the Russian offers, there are increasing signs that the START treaty could be threatened by Ukraine's reluctance to scrap the world's third-largest nuclear arsenal: * Igor Yukhnovksy, Ukraine's first vice prime minister, said Thursday the former Soviet republic would surrender its 176 long-range nuclear missiles only in return for money. "We can sell these nuclear warheads to the highest bidder . . . to nuclear states, that means Russia first of all, or maybe another state, depending on which pays most," he said. * The Ukrainian government now says it does not want to destroy its nuclear missile silos as it is obliged to under the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. It has expressed concerns about the environmental impact of their destruction and said it hopes to convert the silos to civilian use. * A vocal faction in Ukraine's parliament opposes the government's stated goal of becoming nuclear-free. The breakup of the Soviet Union left long-range strategic nuclear weapons in the hands of four states: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan, with the strategic forces under a joint Commonwealth of Independent States command. Russia is the only one with short-range, tactical missiles; the others gave up theirs earlier this year. The Russian legislature voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to ratify START. The treaty would cut by about one-third the U.S. and former Soviet arsenals of long-range missiles and bombers in the next seven years. The U.S. Senate approved the pact last month; Kazakhstan ratified it in July and Belarus has indicated its readiness to approve it. "The real concern is Ukraine. It seems important for the U.S. government to make it clear to Kiev that Ukraine risks jeopardizing its integration into the international community and Western economic aid if it doesn't ratify the START treaty," said Dunbar Lockwood, a senior analyst with the private Arms Control Association in Washington. Presidents Bush and Yeltsin agreed to go even further than START during their June summit in Washington, limiting each side to 3,000 to 3,500 warheads by the end of the century. START sets the ceiling at 6,000 apiece; they now have about 10,000 each. The Russian president had wanted a limit of 2,000 to 2,500 warheads, a long-standing Yeltsin proposal likely to be repackaged and sent to Mr. Clinton. "It wouldn't be surprising if they pushed for deeper cuts," Mr. Lockwood said. "It's difficult to say how amenable a Clinton administration would be to that. I think it's too early to say. It is clear that the Bush administration was opposed to going below 3,500 strategic nuclear warheads." Hard-liners in the Russian legislature and military also oppose further cuts, fearing they would leave Russia vulnerable. Mr. Clinton supports the START treaty but has not taken a position on how many warheads the United States and Russia should keep. "I believe we can negotiate much lower limits on nuclear warheads in light of recent developments in the former Soviet Union," he said in February. "It is important, however, that we retain a capability that will deter any possible nuclear threat over the coming decade." Mr. Clinton also supports a comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty, which Mr. Bush opposed. Mr. Yeltsin has repeatedly called on both countries to halt nuclear testing. After Mr. Clinton's election, Mr. Yeltsin signaled his desire to accelerate the pace of disarmament. He sent a note to Mr. Clinton proposing further cuts of strategic offensive weapons, Deputy Foreign Minister Georgi Mamedov said. "It is a very extensive agenda based on what we have already accomplished in cooperation with the Bush administration, but going further and taking into account the goals of Russia as a great democratic state and the statements by Bill Clinton and many people who surround him," Mr. Mamedov said. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM