Subject: U.S. Raps Russian Duma For Not Ratifying The Chemical Weapons Convention

The United States is "extremely disappointed" by the decision of the Russian Duma not to vote on ratification of the Chemical Weapons Convention.

State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns said today, "It's very important that Russia now make the effort to ratify this treaty, and very quickly." The Russian Duma adjourned without voting on the Chemical Weapons Convention. A possible vote will not occur until later this year.

Burns praised the Senate for its ratification vote Thursday night, calling approval "a major success. I think it really was one of those significant successes of the president's second term in foreign policy."

Burns praised the government of Boris Yeltsin for its support of the Chemical Weapons Convention, but he noted that Russia, by not ratifying, will not be able to participate in drafting the rules for implementing the convention. To be a participant, a nation must ratify the treaty by April 29.