Russian Prime Minister Vladimir V Putin praised US President Obama on Friday for canceling a plan for an antiballistic missile system in Eastern Europe that Russia had deemed a threat, suggesting that the move would lead to improved relations between their countries.

“I very much hope that this correct and brave decision will be followed by others,” Putin said.

The Obama decision on Thursday replaced the Bush administration antimissile plan with a reconfigured system focused on short- and medium-range missiles. Putin did not say whether Russia would respond with concessions to the US, particularly on the issue of Iran’s nuclear programme and its overall military capabilities.

Russian officials did indicate that the Kremlin would withdraw its threat to base short-range missiles on Russia’s western border, in Kaliningrad.

Also on Friday, in another sign of warming in relations, NATO called for new cooperation between the alliance and Moscow, including possible coordination between antimissile systems. In his first major foreign policy speech, which was coordinated with the White House, NATO’s new Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, called for a “genuine new beginning of our relationship with Russia” and said the West and Russia have a shared interest in opposing the proliferation of ballistic missile technology in other countries.

“We should explore the potential of linking the US, NATO and Russian missile defence systems at an appropriate time,” Rasumussen told an audience invited by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Brussels. Russian officials privately acknowledged that the Obama decision changed the dynamics of relations with the US, but said they were reluctant to do anything before Russia’s President Dmitry A Medvedev meets with Obama at the UN next week.