RUSSIAN DEFENSE MINISTRY SUPPORTS PRESIDENT’S DECISION TO SUSPEND THE CFE TREATY

REGNUM
September 19, 2007

The Russian Defense Ministry backs the decision of the Russian
president to suspend the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty,
spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry Head Directorate for
International Military Cooperation, Maj.-Gen. Vladimir Nikishin is
quoted as saying by a REGNUM correspondent at parliamentary hearings
at the Russian State Duma.

Nikishin noted that, in accordance with the acting CFE
Treaty. Successors of the USSR – CIS member-countries – can have
13,150 battle tanks, while the allowed level for groups of countries
is 20,000. "Bulgaria, Poland, Romania, Czechia and Slovakia have
taken the quota of 6,850 tanks with them to the NATO lap," Nikishin
said. According to the treaty, Russia can have 6,350 tanks. According
to the military official, Russia together with CSTO member-countries
(Armenia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan) can use the quota of 8,420
tanks. "The same situation is with all the five categories of weapons
mentioned in the treaty," the Defense Ministry’s spokesman said.

Speaking on exceeding group limits by NATO, Nikishin noted that it
totals 5,999 battle tanks, 9,822 armored carriers, 5,111 artillery
systems, 1,497 war planes, 531 attack helicopters.

He also noted that exceeding flank limits is also
substantial. According to Nikishin, conditions necessary to restore
the viability of the CFE Treaty include returning Latvia, Lithuania
and Estonia into the sphere of the treaty, decreasing the sum of
permitted levels restricted by a treaty on arms and equipment of NATO
member-countries in order to make up for the potential acquired by the
alliance during the process of its enlargement. Besides, according to
Nikishin, it is important to pass a decision to cancel flank limits
in the Russian territory.