Obama: US and Russia should unite against nuclear threat

Jul 7, 2009, 9:57 GMT

U.S. President Barack Obama speaks in the Gostiny Dvor during the meeting with the graduators of the Russian Economic School in Moscow, Russia 07 July 2009. Barack Obama is on a working visit in Moscow. EPA/YURI KOCHETKOV

Moscow - US President Barack Obama on Tuesday called on Moscow to join forces with Washington in opposing North Korea's efforts to become a nuclear power and prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon.

Obama was speaking at a business school in the Russian capital, on the second day of his first official visit and a day after he and his counterpart Dmitry Medvedev agreed to reduce nuclear warheads as part of negotiations for a new arms reduction treaty.

Progress in the talks on scaling back nuclear arsenals marked an important step in laying the legal and moral foundation to prevent the proliferation and use of nuclear weapons worldwide, Obama said.

As the world's leading nuclear powers, the two nations had a responsibility in this regard.

'As we keep our own commitments, we must hold other nations accountable for theirs,' he said.

Neither of the former two Cold War adversaries would benefit from a nuclear arms race in East Asia or the Middle East.

'That is why we should be united in opposing North Koreas efforts to become a nuclear power, and preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon,' he said.

Obama said he was 'pleased' that he and Medvedev had 'agreed upon a joint threat assessment of the ballistic missile challenges of the 21st century, including from Iran and North Korea.'

'This is not about singling out individual nations ­ it is about the responsibilities of all nations,' he added.

'In the short period since the end of the Cold War, we have already seen India, Pakistan and North Korea conduct nuclear tests. Without a fundamental change, do any of us truly believe that the next two decades will not bring about the further spread of nuclear weapons?'

Obama said eliminating the threat from Irans nuclear and ballistic missile programs would also eliminate the need for a missile defence system in Europe.

Russia has opposed the US' plans to build a missile defence shield in Eastern Europe, which the US insists is directed only at so-called rogue states. Obama was due Tuesday to discuss the issue with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

At the start of Obama visit, officials said the two sides had reached a basic agreement on the new treaty to replace the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START). Under the new treaty, Washington and Moscow would aim to reduce the number of nuclear warheads held by each to between 1,500 and 1,675, compared with the current START figures of up to 2,200.