Clinton: Russia should not fear missile defense program

In Ukraine, Clinton welcomes news of Chernobyl's final closure

June 4, 2000
Web posted at: 10:58 p.m. EDT (0258 GMT)

In this story: Limited system being tested U.S., Russia sign pacts RELATED STORIES, SITES

From staff and wire reports

MOSCOW -- In a historic speech to Russia's Duma on Monday, U.S. President Bill Clinton delivered two key messages -- that the Russians should not fear America's missile defense program, and that their nation's future will be vital to the new century.

Clinton, the first U.S. president to address the Duma, or lower house of parliament, also urged Russia's legislators to continue strengthening democracy and the nation's economy.

Clinton also told the Duma that Russia's economy was growing and that the vast nation was starting to produce goods and services that people want.

VIDEO CNN's John King shows Clinton's historic address to Russia's Duma and more of his visit to Moscow. (June 5) QuickTime Play Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K     SUMMIT MENU Click to see what world leaders ate at the Moscow summit     VIDEO Watch a CNN report two days after the Chernobyl disaster    INTERACTIVE The missile shield dispute     MESSAGE BOARD Clinton in Europe     IN DEPTH Cold War

"The United States wants a strong Russia, a Russia strong enough to protect its territorial integrity while respecting that of its neighbors," Clinton said.

"A great deal of the 21st century will be strongly influenced by the success of the Russian people in building a modern, strong democratic nation that is part of the life of the rest of the world," Clinton said.

Differences between the United States and Russia on missile defense were mainly technical, and could eventually be resolved, Clinton told the Russian legislators.

After his speech, Clinton paid a farewell call on President Vladimir Putin, made a courtesy visit to the U.S. Embassy and then flew on to Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.

During his six-hour trip to the Ukraine, Clinton met with Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, who announced that the Chernobyl nuclear power plant will be permanently shut down by December 15.

Located in north-central Ukraine, the Chernobyl plant was the site in 1986 of the world's worst nuclear accident.

Clinton also was to make a public address to the Ukrainian people at St. Michael's Square in Kiev. The president's schedule calls for him to fly back Monday night to the United States.

Limited system being tested

Clinton and Putin agreed during a summit Sunday that a nuclear threat was emerging from so-called rogue nations like North Korea and Iraq, but the two leaders remained divided on how to deal with it.

The United States is testing a limited missile defense system, and Clinton may order it started to guard against future threats. That would require changes in the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty, and U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott said Putin made "absolutely clear" that Russia opposed them.

Clinton said he does not want to breach the ABM treaty, but he did not state flatly that the United States would not exercise its right to withdraw from the pact.

On a Moscow radio call-in program Sunday night, interviewer Aleksey Venediktov asked Clinton why he wouldn't accept Putin's suggestion that they cooperate on a different kind of missile defense.

It would seek to down missiles soon after they are launched, instead of trying to intercept them in space, which the ABM treaty forbids.

"The problem is, we think it will take 10 years or more to develop" that kind of system, Clinton said. "We expect to face this threat in the United States within five years," when he said the space-intercept system could be ready.

"But it frightens Russians, obviously," Venediktov said.

Clinton and Putin sign a nuclear treaty agreeing to permanently dispose of 68 metric tons of weapons-grade plutonium

Clinton replied: "Yes, I understand, but I think they wouldn't be frightened if they understand the exact nature of the difference. ... If the U.S. has a missile defense that can stop a couple of missiles from North Korea, does it have the potential to upset what has kept us safe all these years, which is mutual deterrence? We say no, the Russians say it might. So we're trying to work that through."

Also on Sunday, Clinton and Putin announced they had agreed on measures to lower the nuclear threat, but were still grappling with differences over the potential role of a missile-defense shield.

Each country agreed to dispose of 34 tons of missile- grade plutonium, enough to make thousands of warheads, over 20 years.

Russia's leadership wants the nations to reduce nuclear weapons by 1,500 under a follow-on agreement to the START II arms reduction treaty. The START III blueprint would call for reductions on each side to between 2,000 and 2,500 nuclear weapons.

Said Clinton: "It would require us to change our strategic plan, and should be left for future negotiations."

The leaders also agreed to set up a joint data- exchange center in Moscow to share early warning information on missile and space launches. The center would be the first permanent U.S.-Russia military operation, Clinton said.

"It is a common commitment to prevent the proliferation of missile technology," he said.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

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