US President Barack Obama asked Senators to quickly ratify the New START treaty with Russia on nuclear weapons, warning that failure to approve it would result in serious consequences for America's security.
In his weekly address, Obama said that failure to ratify the treaty this year would not only mean losing American nuclear inspectors in Russia, but also undermine international coalition pressuring Iran, put at risk the transit routes used to equip US troops in Afghanistan and undo decades of American leadership and bipartisanship on nuclear security. "Without ratification this year, the United States will have no inspectors on the ground, and no ability to verify Russian nuclear activities. So those who would block this treaty are breaking President (Ronald) Reagan's rule--they want to trust, but not verify," Obama said.
"Without ratification, we put at risk the coalition that we have built to put pressure on Iran, and the transit route through Russia that we use to equip our troops in Afghanistan. And without ratification, we risk undoing decades of American leadership on nuclear security, and decades of bipartisanship on this issue. Our security and our position in the world areat stake," he said. Obama said this treaty is rooted in a practice that dates back to Reagan.
"The idea is simple as the two nations with over 90 per cent of the world's nuclear weapons, the US and Russia have a responsibility to work together to reduce our arsenals," he said. "And to ensure that our national security is protected, the US has an interest in tracking Russia's nuclear arsenal through a verification effort that puts US inspectors on the ground. As President Reagan said when he signed a nuclear arms treaty with the Soviet Union in 1987, 'Trust, but verify'," he said.
The treaty - signed by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Obama at an elaborate ceremony in Prague in April - restricts each nation to a maximum of 1,550 deployed warheads, a cut of about 30 per cent from a limit set in 2002. "Indeed, since the Reagan years, every President has pursued a negotiated, verified, arms reduction treaty. And every time that these treaties have been reviewed by the Senate, they have passed with over 85 votes," Obama said.
"Bipartisan support for New START could not be stronger. It has been endorsed by Republicans from the Reagan Administration and both Bush Administrations including Colin Powell, George Shultz, Jim Baker, and Henry Kissinger. And it was approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by a strong bipartisan vote of 14-4," he said
