Russia, U.S. close to clinch new START deal

MOSCOW, March 18 (Xinhua) -- After holding crunch talks to help seal a new strategic arms reduction treaty (START) here on Thursday, top diplomats of Russia and the United States, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, all voiced confidence to clinch the deal in the near future.

START PREPARATION INTO FINAL STAGE

Lavrov announced at a joint news conference with Clinton that preparation on the successor START treaty has reached final stage.

"There is every reason to believe that we have approached the final stage in the finish stretch," said Lavrov.

He also said delegations from both countries will soon report on the completion of their arms treaty talks. Then they will discuss over the date and venue for the signing of the START treaty.

Clinton said "substantial progress" has been made on arms treaty talks. She also hoped that negotiations would finish soon.

Russia and the United States have been working on a new arms control deal since Russian president Dmitry Medvedev and U.S. President Barack Obama met in April last year, in an effort to " reset" their ties plunged to an unprecedented low during the final days of former U.S. Bush administration.

An outline of the new pact, agreed by both presidents, includes slashing nuclear warheads to 1,500-1,675 and delivery vehicles to 500-1,000.