The Hill News

President Obama received a congratulatory call on Thursday from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev marking the Senate ratification of the New START treaty.

The Russian president and Obama "agreed that this was an historic event for both countries and for U.S.-Russia relations," according to a White House account of the call. The Senate approved the deal between the U.S. and Russian on nuclear arms reduction in a Wednesday afternoon vote.

The rest of the readout:

President Obama said that the two leaders had a very productive year working together on new START, as well as Afghanistan, Iran sanctions, the 123 Agreement, issues related to the WTO, and the situation in Kyrgyzstan. President Obama also underscored the importance of the United States and Russia working together to support a peaceful referendum in Sudan and a resolution to the impasse in Cote D’Ivoire that respects the results of the recent democratic election. The two l! eaders wished each other a Merry Christmas, and pledged to continue their close partnership in the New Year.