U.S. and Russia take first steps towards reducing nuclear arsenals

Envoys from Russia and the U.S. said they had a "very productive" first session in the effort to reach a new agreement on reducing the size of the two nations' nuclear arsenals.  Preliminary talks to replace the START treaty "got off to a fast start," said U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Verification and Compliance Rose Gottemoeller (formerly of the Ploughshares-funded Carnegie Endowment for International Peace) following her meeting in Rome with Russian Foreign Ministry security and disarmament chief Anatoly Antonov. Daryl Kimball of the Arms Control Association told Global Security Newswire, "The two sides clearly want a result and it's likely they will produce a follow-on treaty to START. The two countries' positions are not that far apart on key issues."