“U.S. to Officially Inform Russia of Its Withdrawal from ABM Treaty“

The U.S. press reported on Dec. 11 that U.S. President George W. Bush decided to withdraw the United States from the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty, which bans the missile defense (MD) system that the U.S. is pushing forward.

It was made known that President Bush informed Russian President Vladimir Putin of his decision as such via Secretary of State Colin Powell who visited Moscow recently. Powell and his Russian counterparts made progress in negotiations to make substantial reductions in offensive nuclear weapons, but they did not reach an agreement on revising or denunciating the ABM Treaty for the U.S.-led missile defense system.

President Bush said in his speech at The Citadel, a military college in South Carolina, "We must move beyond the ABM Treaty, a treaty that was written in a different era, for a different enemy." and insisted, "The Sep. 11 Terrorist Attacks heightened the need for a defense system against missile attacks."

The ABM Treaty, which was concluded between the United States and former Soviet Union in 1972, requires the two nations to give six months` notice before abandoning the pact.

The United States is planning to examine the missile defense system in a few months, which is against the ABM Treaty.

Han Ki-Heung eligius@donga.com