Moscow (CNN) -- The lower house of the Russian parliament gave preliminary approval Friday to START, a nuclear arms reduction treaty between Russia and the United States.
The State Duma voted 350-58 in favor of the accord Friday. It needed 225 votes to pass.
Two more readings are required before the treaty can go to the upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, for consideration. The first of those two readings will happen in mid-January.
The U.S. Senate approved the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START, by a 71-26 vote on Wednesday.
The treaty is considered a critical component of nuclear non-proliferation efforts and the Obama administration's attempt to "reset" relations between the United States and Russia.
It would resume inspections of each country's nuclear arsenal while limiting both the United States and Russia to 1,550 warheads and 700 launchers.
The accord "will strengthen our country's security (and) international stability, consolidate the non-proliferation regime, and become an additional factor encouraging positive trends both in our relations with the U.S. and on the international arena in general," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said during the debate that preceded the vote.
Lavrov, however, criticized a resolution passed by the U.S. Senate stating that treaty should not be interpreted in a way that could restrict the development of America's missile defense system. CNN
