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Russia yet to see U.S. Senate ratification resolution

© RIA NovostiRussian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov - Sputnik International
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Russia is waiting for the text of the U.S. Senate resolution on the ratification of a new strategic arms pact to proceed with its own ratification procedure, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday.

Russia is waiting for the text of the U.S. Senate resolution on the ratification of a new strategic arms pact to proceed with its own ratification procedure, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Thursday.

He said the document's wording was crucial for the ratification process in the Russian parliament.

"We do not have the final text of the resolution approved by the Senate; we know what it is all about, but the final official text is prepared in accordance with the standing rules of procedure in the Senate," he said.

Russia's lower house of parliament may ratify the treaty on Friday, State Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov said, adding that the text may be received from the United States within hours.

The U.S. Senate passed the new START treaty by a 71-26 vote on Wednesday in what is seen as a major foreign policy victory for U.S. President Barack Obama, who is eager to "reset" relations with Russia.

The treaty, signed by Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in April, has won the backing of the world's top figures, including NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

Obama hailed New START as "the most significant arms control agreement in nearly two decades."

Medvedev also welcomed the move but said that "the parliament might need some time to study the legal aspects of the ratification by the Senate prior to making its own decision," his spokeswoman Natalya Timakova said.

MOSCOW, December 23 (RIA Novosti) 

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