Russia and the United States will complete talks on a new strategic arms reduction treaty (START) within days, said a Russian diplomat on Monday.

"We are literally on the verge and I believe that we will end this within days," Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters, adding that "it is still early to say where it will be signed."

Russia and the United States have been working on a new arms treaty since Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and U.S. President Barack Obama met in April last year, in an effort to "reset" their ties which plunged to an unprecedented low during the final days of President George Bush's administration.

Despite rounds of negotiations, the two sides failed to reach a pact before the original 1991 START expired in December last year.

An outline of the new treaty, agreed by both presidents, includes slashing nuclear warheads to 1,500-1,675 and delivery vehicles to 500-1,000.

The diplomat also said that the interrelation between the new treaty and the missile defense system "has been worked on" since the start of bilateral negotiations.

Moscow has repeatedly demanded a link between missile defense and the offensive weapons cuts to be included in the new START treaty.

Russian daily newspaper Kommersant reported Saturday citing a diplomatic source that Moscow and Washington may sign the long-awaited START treaty in April in the Czech capital of Prague, before Washington hosts the Nuclear Security Summit on April 12-13.