Vote on new arms treaty postponed

WASHINGTON, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- More guarantees are needed before the U.S. Senate will be ready to vote on a new strategic arms treaty with Russia, a key Republican lawmaker says.

Sen. John Kyl of Arizona, the leading GOP voice on the pact, said Senate Republicans are insisting funding be guaranteed to fix up the country's aging nuclear weapons arsenal, The Washington Post reported Wednesday.

The GOP position has prompted Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, to delay a key vote on the treaty with Russia.

Kerry announced Tuesday that the Senate won't take up the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty until after the summer recess.

The move means consideration moves into the politically charged period just before the November elections.

The treaty commits the United States and Russia to modest cuts in their long-range, ready-to-use weapons and extends a 15-year system allowing each side to check the other's nuclear facilities.