RUSSIA - Sept. 10 - Moscow Stands Firm Against Shield Plan.

During his trip to the southern city of Astrakhan, Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov says Moscow might accept changes to the 1972 ABM Treaty, but would not agree to dilute the accord's ban on the national missile defence system that Washington wants to build. He says: "Theoretically, I do not exclude the possibility" of modifications. "When I say theoretically, I mean we must clearly understand what missile defence is being conceived by the United States and what technical possibilities in air, sea, ground and space fields are envisaged. Along with thresholds of nuclear weapons cuts, those are exactly the questions for which we still cannot receive answers from the American side". (Moscow has pushed for deeper cuts in nuclear arsenals. Washington has said it should complete a review of how many nuclear weapons the US needs before discussing specific figures. Washington also has said that work on the proposed missile defence could be months away from violating the ABM Treaty, and that it must withdraw from the accord or amend it together with Russia before then. Some US officials have recently voiced hope that Moscow might soften its stance on missile defence by November, when Pres. Bush and Pres. Putin are to meet in Texas. They also will meet next month on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific economic summit meeting in Shanghai. The two leaders discussed preparations for the meeting in a telephone conversation on Sept. 10. The Kremlin said: "It was underlined that the meeting in Shanghai would become an important stage of preparation to the full-fledged Russian-American summit"). Ivanov says he expects the US Undersecretary of Defence Douglas Feith to spell out US plans in talks in Moscow on Sept. 11. He says the consultations will continue this month when he meets Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, and in talks between FM Igor Ivanov and Secretary of State Powell.