U.S., Russia Begin Arms Control Pact

The U.S. attempted to turn over a new leaf with Russia when the two powers exchanged documents ratifying the START arms control treaty in Munich. "Today we exchange the instruments of ratification for a treaty that lessens the nuclear danger facing the Russian and American people and the world," Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Saturday. The 11th U.S. congress ratified the treaty in the final days of its lame duck session in December. The agreement reduces ceilings of allowed nuclear warheads by 30 percent over the next ten years.