BRATISLAVA, Feb 24: Russia and the United States signed a deal on Thursday to control the spread of portable anti-aircraft missiles - a hot stock for militants around the world and a growing threat to civilian aircraft.

Washington has expressed worry over reports of planned sales of such Russian missiles to Syria. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov, who signed the protocol with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, said the deal did not limit or ban the trade of shoulder-launched weapons that had already caused problems in bilateral relations.

"The sides only undertake to keep partners informed of the sales, because only Russia and the United States produce these weapons," Russia's Interfax news agency quoted the Russian defence minister as saying. -Reuters