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US President Bush will soon give Russia notice that the United States is withdrawing from the 1972 nucleartreaty that bans testing of missile defense systems. US government officials said on Tuesday.
He will announce the decision in the next several days, effectively citing a clause in the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty that requires the United States and Russia to give six months' notice before abandoning thepact.
Wich the decision, Bush takes the first step foward fulfilling a campaign pledge to develop and deploy an anti-missile system that he says will protect the United States and its allies, including Russia, from missiles fired by hostile nations.
Russia and many US allies have warned Bush that withdrawing from the pact might trigger a nuclear arms race. Critics of the plan also question whether an effective system can be developed without enormous expense.
The president defended his push for a missile shield during a national security speech Tuesday at the Citadel in South Carolina.
"Last week we conducted another promising test of our missile defense technology," Bush said. "For the good of peace, we're moving forward with an active program to determine what works and what does not work. In order to do so, we must move beyond the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, a treaty that was written ina different era, for a different enemy."
"America and our allies must not be bound to the past. We must be able to build the defenses we need against the enemies of the 2lst century," he said.
According to Bush administration officials, Russian President Vladimir Putin had assured Bush during theirOctober talks in Washington that US-Russian relations would not suffer even if Bush pulled out of the treaty.
The decision came as Secretary of State Colin Powell, in Moscow, said Russia and the United States are near agreement on drastic cuts in long-range nuclear arsenals, but remain, at odds over a US missile defense.
