US, Russia see progress in relaunching relationship (Roundup)

May 7, 2009, 23:34 GMT

Washington - President Barack Obama touted an 'excellent opportunity' for the United States and Russia to kick-start relations that have frayed in recent years, after a meeting Thursday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

'I think we have an excellent opportunity to reset the relationship between the United States and Russia on a whole host of issues,' Obama said, as the two countries work to improve ties that last year reached one of their lowest points since the Cold War.

Topping the list of priorities are talks toward a new nuclear disarmament treaty, which Obama and Russian President Dmitri Medvedev agreed to launch during a summit last month in London.

Lavrov and US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton earlier Thursday insisted the arms-control talks would not be derailed by disagreements over other international issues, including the situation in Georgia and the Iran nuclear programme.

A deal to cut the two countries' massive weapons arsenals 'is too important ... to make it hostage of any particular regime anywhere around the globe,' Lavrov said at a press conference with Clinton.

The latest US-Russian rapprochement comes even as relations between Moscow and the wider NATO alliance have reached a new low. Russia expelled two NATO officials Wednesday in a tit-for-tat move after a spying scandal in Brussels.

Lavrov has backed out of a NATO-Russia meeting to protest a NATO military exercise that began Wednesday in Georgia but said he hoped the 'obstacles' to the two sides working together 'will be removed very soon.'

Ties between Russia and the United States became severely strained last year amid disputes over US plans for a missile-defence system in Eastern Europe and Russia's war last summer against Georgia.

After meeting Obama, Lavrov said the two countries were working to 'narrow the disagreements for the benefit of our countries and the international stability.'

Obama and Medvedev, in an effort to revive relations, agreed to draw up a deal to replace the strategic weapons reduction programme (START), which expires at the end of 2009. The two leaders will meet again in July in Moscow.