Top U.S. Negotiator Calls for START Ratification by Summer

The lead U.S. negotiator on the new nuclear arms control treaty signed earlier this month by Russia and the United States yesterday called on the Senate to ratify the pact before fall. "We are looking to submit the package to the Senate in the first weeks of May," said Rose Gottemoeller, assistant secretary of state for verification, compliance and implementation. "It's going to be a very intense process, but we hope we can carry it through this summer."  She spoke at a lunch event sponsored by the Ploughshares-funded  Arms Control Association.