CNN 2010-04-12

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS ANCHOR: It is the most awesome 1 day of the week. You can't beat Fridays; they're fantastic. We thank you for spending 10 minutes of your Friday with us here at CNN Student News. I'm Carl Azuz. Let's get this thing started.

First Up: START Treaty

AZUZ: We are getting things started with START. It stands for Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. It's an agreement between the United States and Russia for both countries to reduce the number of nuclear weapons they have. President Obama also says it's part of the effort to "reset 2" the relationship between the two countries. Yesterday, he and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev got together in the Czech Republic to sign off on START. The agreement cuts the number of nuclear weapons that the U.S. and Russia have by about a third. The White House is scheduled to hold a meeting on nuclear security next week. It's something that President Obama says affects the entire world.

U.S. PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA: Nuclear weapons are not simply an issue for the United States and Russia. They threaten the common security of all nations. A nuclear weapon in the hands of a terrorist is a danger to people everywhere, from Moscow to New York, from the cities of Europe to South Asia.

AZUZ: As for the new START treaty, it still needs to be passed by at least two-thirds of the U.S. Senate. And some lawmakers are concerned that reducing the number of nuclear weapons might leave the U.S. looking weak. But Russian President Medvedev says it's the best option for everyone.

RUSSIAN PRESIDENT DMITRY MEDVEDEV [TRANSLATED]: No one stands to lose from this agreement. I believe that this is a typical feature of our cooperation. Both parties have won, and taking into account this victory of ours, the entire world community has won.

AZUZ: Over in West Virginia, rescue workers are struggling in their attempts to try to reach the victims of this week's deadly mine explosion. Crews did start down into the mine yesterday morning, but they had to come back out because the air quality got worse and threatened a new blast. They're trying to reach one of the rescue chambers 3 that are located inside the mine. Officials think four missing men might have headed there after Monday's explosion. Meanwhile, the community is holding memorials and vigils, like this one, for the trapped miners and for the 25 people who were killed in the accident. For the latest details on this story over the weekend -- it's developing; it could change -- head to CNN.com.