April 14, 2000

STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT

                              THE WHITE HOUSE

                       Office of the Press Secretary
                            (Atlanta, Georgia)
         ________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release                     April 14, 2000


                        STATEMENT BY THE PRESIDENT


I am very pleased that the Russian State Duma today approved the START II
Treaty ? a critical step toward the Treaty?s entering into force.  This
action builds on decades of cooperation between the United States and
Russia to reduce nuclear arms and clearly advances the interests of both
countries.  Together with the START I Treaty, it will result in a
two-thirds reduction in the strategic nuclear weapons that the Soviet Union
and the United States maintained at the height of the Cold War.
START II will make our people safer and our partnership with a democratic
Russia stronger.  It will open the door to further significant steps to
reduce nuclear arms and the nuclear danger, a course that is strongly
supported by the international community and has strong bipartisan support
in the United States.

I congratulate President-elect Putin and his government, members of the
State Duma, and Russian citizens who supported this giant step toward a
safer future.  I look forward to prompt action on the Treaty by the
Federation Council.  Now, we and Russia can and must seize this opportunity
to intensify our discussions on both START III and the ABM Treaty, so we
can take further concrete steps this year to strengthen the security of the
United States, Russia and indeed the whole world.


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