The first meeting of the presidents of Russia and the United States took place in London, which lasted half an hour longer than planned and was devoted mainly to security issues and especially nuclear weapons. Dmitry Medvedev and Barack Obama issued a joint statement in which they said that they still have differences on the issue of deploying a missile defense system in Europe, but they agree on the desire for stability in the Caucasus. Obama said he accepted Medvedev's invitation to visit Moscow.

43-year-old Dmitry Medvedev and 47-year-old Barack Obama expressed satisfaction with the meeting. “Today’s discussion showed that there are significantly more positions that unite us than those that separate us in different directions. After the meeting, I am optimistic about the future of our relations,” Medvedev said after the joint statement on April 1.

Meanwhile, the United States and Russia continue to look at many issues differently. The presidents noted that Russia and the United States continue to have differences on missile defense - the United States still seeks to deploy a missile defense system in Eastern Europe, and Russia still sees this as a threat to its security. The joint statement says that Russia and the United States “do not agree on the causes and consequences of military actions in the Caucasus,” but the countries “will try together to ensure stability in the region.”

The presidents showed unanimity in assessing the situation with nuclear weapons in the DPRK, calling on Pyongyang to show restraint. This was the reaction of Russia and the United States to the possible launch of a ballistic missile by North Korea. Medvedev and Obama fear that, under the guise of launching a satellite, the DPRK will test a launch vehicle for a nuclear warhead. The presidents also declared their commitment to a diplomatic solution to the issue of Iran's possible development of nuclear weapons. "While we recognize Iran's right to pursue a civil nuclear energy development program, Iran needs to restore confidence in its exclusively peaceful nature," the joint statement said.

Medvedev and Obama announced the achievement of a new agreement on the reduction of strategic offensive weapons (START). “The parties will strive to fix in a future agreement levels of strategic offensive arms reduction that will be lower than in the current Moscow Treaty of 2002,” the presidents said in a joint statement. To do this, according to Medvedev and Obama, it is necessary to “achieve new, verifiable reductions in our strategic offensive arsenals in a step-by-step process, starting with replacing the START Treaty with a new legally binding treaty.” The presidents instructed negotiators to “immediately begin negotiations on this new treaty and report on progress in developing a new agreement by July.” It is then that Barack Obama intends to come to Moscow.

Barack Obama intends to visit Moscow in July