Obama and Medvedev completed the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which had been in negotiation for almost a year, with a telephone call March 26.

“I’m pleased to announce that after a year of intense negotiations, the United States and Russia have agreed to the most comprehensive arms control agreement in nearly two decades,” Obama said after talking with Medvedev.

“Since taking office, one of my highest priorities has been addressing the threat posed by nuclear weapons to the American people. And that’s why, last April in Prague, I stated America’s intention to pursue the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons, a goal that’s been embraced by presidents like John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan,” the president said.

Obama and Medvedev agreed to meet in Prague on April 8 to sign the treaty. It would replace the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) agreed to by the United States and the former Soviet Union, and also the 2002 Moscow Treaty.

“Broadly speaking, the new START treaty makes progress in several areas,” Obama said. “It cuts by about a third the nuclear weapons that the United States and Russia will deploy. It significantly reduces missiles and launchers. It puts in place a strong and effective verification regime. And it maintains the flexibility that we need to protect and advance our national security and to guarantee our unwavering commitment to the security of our allies.”

“With this agreement, the United States and Russia — the two largest nuclear powers in the world — also send a clear signal that we intend to lead,” Obama said. “By upholding our own commitments under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, we strengthen our global efforts to stop the spread of these weapons, and [help] to ensure that other nations meet their own responsibilities.”

The agreement limits the countries to 1,550 nuclear warheads, which is 30 percent lower than the limit of the Moscow Treaty, which had set it at 2,200 warheads. The treaty also limits both nations to 800 deployed and nondeployed intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launchers, submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) launchers, and heavy bombers equipped for nuclear armaments.

The treaty has a separate limit of 700 deployed ICBMs, SLBMs, and heavy bombers equipped for nuclear armaments.

The treaty’s formal title is the “Treaty Between the United States of America and the Russian Federation on Measures to Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms.” It is commonly known as the New START Treaty. It lasts 10 years and has a provision for a five-year extension.

The White House said this was the 14th direct meeting or telephone conference between Obama and Medvedev on the treaty and it represents “their shared commitment to ‘reset’ U.S.-Russia relations.” Obama had made improving relations with Russia a major foreign policy objective of his administration, arguing that the Cold War of the 20th century is over and that the two superpowers are partners in the world.

The treaty includes a verification regime that will allow each side to monitor all aspects of the treaty. “At the same time, the inspections and other verification procedures in this treaty will be simpler and less costly to implement than the old START treaty,” the White House said.

“The treaty does not contain any constraints on testing, development or deployment of current or planned U.S. missile-defense programs or current or planned United States long-range conventional strike capabilities,” the White House said.

SENATE AND DUMA APPROVAL

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry and Senator Richard Lugar, the ranking Republican on the committee, met with Obama and his advisers for about an hour March 24 at the White House and received a full briefing on the treaty and the support needed to win approval in the U.S. Senate, which requires a two-thirds majority.

The treaty also has to be approved by the Russian Duma before becoming law.

“A well-designed treaty will send an important message to the rest of the world that America is prepared to lead efforts with key stakeholders to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons,” Kerry said after the meeting with Obama. “Once the treaty and its associated documents are completed and submitted to the Senate, Senator Lugar and I look forward to holding hearings and giving the treaty immediate and careful attention.”

PRAGUE VISION

On April 5, 2009, Obama announced in a major speech at Hradcany Square in Prague that he envisioned a nuclear-free world and would make reducing nuclear weapons a signature piece of his foreign policy agenda.

“Today, I state clearly and with conviction America’s commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons,” Obama told the Prague audience. “I’m not naive. This goal will not be reached quickly — perhaps not in my lifetime. It will take patience and persistence. But now we, too, must ignore the voices who tell us that the world cannot change.”

The United States is hosting a Global Nuclear Summit April 12–13 in Washington to promote a worldwide discussion on ways to control nuclear weapons and to begin the effort to reduce them.

“Such actions invigorate our mutual efforts to strengthen the international nonproliferation regime and convince other countries to help curb proliferation,” the White House announcement said.