Russia calls off joint U.S. exercises scheduled for end of Sept.

MOSCOW, September 5 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Defense Ministry said Tuesday joint Russian-U.S. exercise, called Torgau-2006 and scheduled for late September, cannot be held, as the issue of foreign servicemen's presence in the country was unresolved.

The ministry said the exercise will be postponed until Russia ratifies an agreement on the status of forces between NATO member states and other countries involved in the Partnership for Peace program.

The ministry said the U.S. has been informed of the issue through diplomatic channels earlier Tuesday.

The exercise, named after the German city of Torgau to mark cooperation between the Soviet Union and the United States during WWII, was scheduled to take place in the Nizhny Novgorod Region on the Volga.

The first exercise was held in Moscow and the Moscow Region in May 2004, and the second in May-June 2005 in the Moscow Region and Germany.

The exercise aims to develop Russian-U.S. military cooperation and planning of joint operations.