Earlier this month US President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev pledged to seek a successor agreement to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) by the time it expires in December.

Talks on the treaty -- seen as a cornerstone of strategic arms control -- made little progress under former US president George W. Bush.

"The first official contact on this subject will take place on April 24 in Rome," foreign ministry spokesman Andrei Nesterenko told reporters.

"The task will be to prepare for the launch of the negotiation process in accordance with the instructions of Presidents Dmitry Medvedev and Barack Obama," Nesterenko added.

From then on US and Russian negotiators will meet regularly, and START will also be discussed at a May meeting of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his US counterpart Hillary Clinton, Nesterenko said.

Signed in 1991, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty placed strict limits on the number of missiles and warheads that Moscow and Washington could have, leading to steep reductions in the nuclear arsenals of both sides.

Nesterenko also said Russia welcomed Obama's statement that he would seek Senate ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which would place a broad ban on nuclear explosions for testing purposes.

"We welcome Mr Obama's work toward the ratification of this agreement," Nesterenko said.