After months of intense negotiations, Russian and US officials confirmed that the follow-on treaty to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) was completed this week.
According to the Joint Understanding on the START Follow On Treaty, President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have agreed to reduce the number of delivery vehicles to 800 and the number of accompanying warheads to 1550 over the next seven years. Unlike the Moscow Treaty negotiated by President Bush and President Putin, this treaty, like START before it, includes legally binding verification and monitoring procedures to assure both sides that the parties are complying with the provisions of the treaty.
The treaty will be signed in April 8th, in Prague. After American-Russian relations cooled at the end of the Bush Administration, the new administrations on both sides of the Atlantic worked to end the military posturing—which included missile defense plans in the Czech Republic and Poland—and the so-called “Cold War” political rhetoric.
Thus, this Treaty promises to be about more than arms reduction – it is a continuation of the spirit of goodwill that has always been the linchpin in establishing an environment of greater trust between Russia and the US. This treaty is also an opportunity for the two new presidents of the United States and Russia to forge a strong relationship.
On April 12, we will watch the Nuclear Security Summit hosted by President Obama. Then the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference, May 3 – 15, will unfold on the world stage. At the end of this time the world’s nuclear weapons superpowers will be signing a binding treaty to reduce nuclear weapons. This will set the stage for future treaties, including the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty ratification in the US Senate, and the Fissile Materials Cutoff Treaty. We hope that these steps will increase the potential for a multilateral START treaty, which could—and should—include China.
Spring is a season of renewal and rebirth. What better time for a fresh START on international cooperation and leadership?
White House Fact Sheet on the New START
In other news, check out this article at Nukes of Hazard on the Air Force and nuclear weapons reductions–we think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what a few bright minds in the Air Force think!
Photo Credit: VLADIMIR RODIONOV/AFP/Getty Images
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