OBAMA REAFFIRMS PUSH FOR MORE STOCKPILE REDUCTIONS

President Barack Obama yesterday reaffirmed his intention to reduce the nation’s nuclear stockpile through additional negotiations with Russia, suggesting in a speech at Hankuk University in Seoul, South Korea that he would discuss the potential reductions with Russian President Vladimir Putin in May. In South Korea for the second Nuclear Security Summit, Obama’s comments reflect the path of the current Nuclear Posture Review implementation study being conducted by the Pentagon, which is considering reductions beyond the 1,550-warhead ceiling set by the New START Treaty. He also said that the Administration had encouraged China to “join us” in a dialogue on nuclear issues. “Even as we have more work to do, we can already say with confidence that we have more nuclear weapons than we need,” Obama said. “Even after New START, the United States will still have more than 1,500 deployed nuclear weapons, and some 5,000 warheads. I firmly believe that we can ensure the security of the United States and our allies, maintain a strong deterrent against any threat, and still pursue further reductions in our nuclear arsenal.”