U.S. Senate approves nuclear arms treaty with Russia

Beforeitsnews.com
Wednesday, December 22, 2010 5:30

Windsor Genova - AHN News News Writer

Washington, DC, United States (AHN) - The U.S. Senate ratified Wednesday a new nuclear arms reduction treaty with the Russian Federation.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden announced the ratification as the Senate's presiding officer after 71 senators voted in favor of the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) signed by President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on April 8.

A total 26 Republicans voted against the treaty limiting each country's nuclear warheads to 1,550 each and allowing for 18 verifications of 1,500 weapons per year by each side.

The ratification of the new START came after 11 Republicans crossed party lines on Tuesday and joined 56 Democrats in voting for cloture on the treaty.

The Republicans repeated their opposition to the measure in the last minute with Sen. John Cornyn of Texas arguing that the treaty excludes limits on tactical weapons intended for battlefields. Cornyn argued that Russia has more tactical nuclear weapons than the U.S.