NATO, Russia fail to resolve arms control dispute

Brussels, May 11: NATO and Russian defence chiefs today failed to resolve a row over a European arms control pact that has added to worsening relations between Moscow and the West.

President Vladimir Putin said last month he planned to freeze Moscow's commitments under the Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) pact, accusing NATO nations of ignoring an agreement originally negotiated in the months after the end of the Cold War.

General Yuri Baluyevsky, Chief of the Russian General Staff, told reporters after meeting NATO counterparts in Brussels that Russian officials had started preparing steps to implement Putin's threat.

''Today I can say the CFE treaty is on the verge of collapse but Russia did not want that,'' he told a news conference.

He also reaffirmed Russia's opposition to a US plan to base a missile shield in eastern Europe, a factor cited by Putin as exacerbating tensions between Russia and the West.

The CFE Treaty was negotiated in the months after the Cold War among the then-22 member states of NATO and the Warsaw Pact countries, with the goal of achieving verifiable reductions in conventional military equipment.

Only Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine have ratified an adapted 1999 version, with NATO states holding back from ratifying it until Russia withdraws its remaining troops from Georgia and Moldova.

Both NATO and Russia publicly insist the pact is a cornerstone of security in Europe, but the exact consequences of Russia suspending its commitments under the treaty pact are not clear.

Some analysts say it would be a largely symbolic move given that fears of a direct military confrontation between Russia and the West have subsided since the end of the Cold War.

Moscow argues US plans to open bases for several thousand soldiers in Romania and Bulgaria this year are in breach of the CFE pact, and insists it is under no obligation to remove its own troops from Georgia and Moldova.

NATO officials insist the US bases are not intended as permanent installations and so cannot be seen as a breach.

''The treaty does not preclude temporary deployments,'' said one alliance official who requested anonymity.

The official said NATO allies were encouraged by Russian moves to wind down its troop presence in Georgia but remained concerned that this was not being followed in Moldova.

''Since 2004, the withdrawal has virtually stopped. We do not accept this,'' said the official.

Reuters>