Originally, Russia wanted to lift all restrictions on its deployment of troops in these regions. There were objections from Turkey, Georgia, Norway and some other countries. They argued that in theory this could allow Moscow to station its entire armed forces on the borders in the south or the north. Finally, Russia agreed to a system limiting the number of forces it can move in and out of these regions according to the situation. The document now agreed in Vienna is more than 100 pages long.
Diplomats describe it as a 'basic structure'.
More months of negotiation will be needed to refine the rough text and re-examine some of the details and these could lead to new arguments. But the experts are confident it will be ready for signing by the heads of state and government at the OSCE Summit meeting in Istanbul in November.