UN General Assembly
1998

a real threat in the form of the proliferation of nuclear weapons throughout the planet. It is a common task of the international community to encourage all countries to accede both to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test- Ban Treaty. We welcome Brazilâs accession to the Non- Proliferation Treaty. Russia is committed to the idea of continued reduction of nuclear weapon arsenals and the maintenance of strategic stability at lower armament levels. In this context, we attach particularly great importance to the Russian- American interaction in the area of reducing strategic offensive arms. In the course of his appointment hearings, Mr. Yevgeny M. Primakov, Chairman of the Russian Government, expressed his firm resolve a few days ago to seek early ratification by the State Duma of the START II Treaty. Likewise, it is important for the United States to ratify all documents related to START II. Accession of the other nuclear Powers to the nuclear arms control process is now on the agenda. We urge careful consideration of a proposal made by President