[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: WILLIAM J. CLINTON (2000, Book II)]
[September 6, 2000]
[Pages 1760-1762]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
Joint Statement: Strategic Stability Cooperation Initiative Between the
United States of America and Russian Federation
September 6, 2000
President William Jefferson Clinton of the United States of America
and President Vladimir Putin of the Russian
Federation met today in New York and agreed on a Strategic Stability
Cooperation Initiative as a constructive basis for strengthening trust
between the two sides and for further development of agreed measures to
enhance strategic stability and to counter the proliferation of weapons
of mass destruction, missiles and missile technologies worldwide. In
furtherance of this initiative, the two Presidents approved an
implementation plan developed by their experts as a basis for continuing
this work.
The Strategic Stability Cooperation Initiative builds on the
Presidents' agreement in their two previous meetings. The Joint
Statement on Principles of Strategic Stability, adopted in Moscow on
June 4, 2000, and the Joint Statement on Cooperation on Strategic
Stability, adopted in
[[Page 1761]]
Okinawa on July 21, 2000, establish a constructive basis for progress in
further reducing nuclear weapons arsenals, preserving and strengthening
the ABM Treaty, and confronting new challenges to international
security. The United States and Russia reaffirm their commitment to the
ABM Treaty as a cornerstone of strategic stability. The United States
and Russia intend to implement the provisions of the START I and INF
Treaties, to seek early entry into force of the START II Treaty and its
related Protocol, the 1997 New York agreements on ABM issues and the
Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, and to work towards the early
realization of the 1997 Helsinki Joint Statement on Parameters on Future
Reductions in Nuclear Forces. The United States and Russia also intend
to seek new forms of cooperation in the area of non-proliferation of
missiles and missile technologies with a view to strengthening
international security and maintaining strategic stability within the
framework of the Strategic Stability Cooperation Initiative between our
two countries.
The Strategic Stability Cooperation Initiative could include, along
with expansion of existing programs, new initiatives aimed at
strengthening the security of our two countries and of the entire world
community and without prejudice to the security of any state.
START III Treaty and ABM Treaty. The United States and Russia have
presented their approaches to the principal provisions of the START III
Treaty and on ABM issues. The United States and Russia have held
intensified discussions on further reductions in strategic offensive
forces within the framework of a future START III Treaty and on ABM
issues, with a view to initiating negotiations expeditiously, in
accordance with the Moscow Joint Statement of September 2, 1998, the
Cologne Joint Statement of June 20, 1999 and the Okinawa Joint Statement
of July 21, 2000 by the two Presidents. They will seek to agree upon
additional measures to strengthen strategic stability and confidence,
and to ensure predictability in the military field.
NPT, CTBT, FMCT, BWC and Nuclear Weapon-Free Zones. The United
States and Russia reaffirm their commitment to the Treaty on the Non-
Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons as the foundation of the international
nuclear non-proliferation and nuclear disarmament regime.
The United States and Russia will seek to ensure early entry into
force and effective implementation of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban
Treaty. They will continue to work to begin negotiations to conclude a
Fissile Material Cutoff Treaty and to strengthen the Biological Weapons
Convention. They will continue to facilitate the establishment of
nuclear weapon-free zones in the world, based on voluntary agreements
among states in the relevant region, consistent with the relevant 1999
Report of the United Nations Disarmament Commission, as an important
avenue for efforts to prevent nuclear weapons proliferation.
Discussions of issues related to the threat of proliferation of
missiles and missile technology. The United States and Russia are
prepared to expand their discussions of issues related to the threat of
proliferation of missiles and missile technologies. These discussions
will include annual briefings based on assessments of factors and events
related to ballistic and cruise missile proliferation. Annual
assessments will address potential threats to international security.
With a view to preventing the proliferation of missiles and weapons of
mass destruction, political and diplomatic measures will be discussed
and undertaken, using bilateral and multilateral mechanisms.
Cooperation in the area of Theater Missile Defense. The United
States and Russia are prepared to resume and then expand cooperation in
the area of Theater Missile Defense (TMD), and also to consider the
possibility of involving other states, with a view to strengthening
global and regional stability.
The sides will consider as specific areas of such cooperation:
Expansion of the bilateral program of joint TMD command and
staff exercises.
Possibility of involving other states in joint TMD command
and staff exercises.
Possibility of development of methods for enhanced
interaction for joint use of TMD systems.
Joint development of concepts for possible cooperation in
TMD systems.
Possibility of reciprocal invitation of observers to actual
firings of TMD systems.
Early warning information. The United States and Russia, in
implementation of the Memorandum of Agreement between the United States
of America and the Russian Federation
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on the Establishment of a Joint Center for the Exchange of Data from
Early Warning Systems and Notification of Missile Launches signed in
Moscow on June 4, 2000, intend to establish and put into operation in
Moscow within a year the joint center for exchange of data to preclude
the possibility of missile launches caused by a false missile attack
warning. The Parties will also make efforts to come to an early
agreement on a regime for exchanging notifications of missile launches,
consistent with the statement of the Presidents at Okinawa on July 21,
2000.
Missile Non-Proliferation measures. The United States and Russia
intend to strengthen the Missile Technology Control Regime. They declare
their commitment to seek new avenues of cooperation with a view to
limiting proliferation of missiles and missile technologies. Consistent
with the July 21, 2000, Joint Statement of the Presidents at Okinawa,
they will work together with other states on a new mechanism to
integrate, inter alia, the Russian proposal for a Global Control System
for Non-Proliferation of Missiles and Missile Technologies (GCS), the
U.S. proposal for a missile code of conduct, as well as the MTCR.
Confidence and transparency-building measures. Bearing in mind their
obligations under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear
Weapons, the United States and Russia will seek to expand cooperation
related to the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) to promote a
mutually beneficial technical exchange that will facilitate the
implementation of the CTBT after its entry into force. The United States
and Russia are prepared to discuss confidence and transparency-building
measures as an element of facilitating compliance with, preserving and
strengthening the ABM Treaty. These measures could include: data
exchanges, pre-notifications of planned events, voluntary
demonstrations, participation in observations, organization of
exhibitions, and strengthening the ABM Treaty compliance verification
process.
The Presidents of the United States and Russia have agreed that
officials from the relevant ministries and agencies will meet annually
to coordinate their activities in this area, and look forward with
interest to such a meeting in the near future.
The United States and Russia call upon all nations of the world to
unite their efforts to strengthen strategic stability.
The President of The President of
the United States of America the Russian Federation
New York City
September 6, 2000
Note: An original was not available for verification of the content of
this joint statement. The release issued by the Office of the Press
Secretary also included the Strategic Stability Cooperation Initiative
Implementation Plan.