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Risk reduction theme to run through talks with Russia held by US, NATO, OSCE — US envoy

The theme of arms control runs through all three engagements, Julianne Smith

BRUSSELS, January 11. /TASS/. Risk reduction, transparency and arms control will be the common themes for talks with Russia that will be held by the US, NATO and the OSCE, the US permanent representative to NATO Julianne Smith, said during a conference call in Brussels on Tuesday.

"There are some common themes to the three engagements," she said. "We are broadly talking about risk reduction. We are focusing on transparency."

"Then the theme of arms control runs through all three engagements," she went on to say.

Smith said Geneva was an "incredibly small bilateral discussion."

"We are widening the circle" for the Russia-NATO talks in Brussels, she said. "And then the circle gets even wider when we get to Vienna" for the OSCE talks, Smith said.

Negotiators are ready for a meaningful dialogue going into the talks with Russia, she said. "I don’t think any of us are feeling particularly optimistic," Smith said. "I don’t think any of us are feeling particularly pessimistic.".

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