Wednesday 24 March 2010 20.51 GMT Luke Harding in Moscow, Julian Borger, and Ewen MacAskill in Washington US President Barack Obama and Russia’s president, Dmitry Medvedev, in Moscow last year, when a framework for reduction was agreed Photograph: Anatoly Maltsev/EPA
Barack Obama's ambitious goal of freeing the world of nuclear weapons won a significant boost tonight when Russia indicated that it had reached agreement with the United States on a historic nuclear arms reduction treaty.
Kremlin officials said that a document to replace the 1991 Start treaty had been agreed with Washington. A signing ceremony between Obama and Russia's president, Dmitry Medvedev, is likely to take place early next month in the Czech capital Prague, they said.
White House officials stopped short of announcing a done deal, but confirmed the US was "very close" to signing a new treaty with Russia. They suggested that the last remaining step was for the two presidents to agree a signing date....
