New START
Encyclopedia
New START (Russian: СНВ-III, SNV-III) is a nuclear arms reduction
treaty
between the United States of America and the Russian Federation with the formal name of Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. It was signed on 8 April 2010 in Prague
, and, after ratification, entered into force on 5 February 2011. It is expected to last at least until 2021.
New START replaced the Treaty of Moscow (SORT
), which was due to expire in December 2012. In terms of name, it is a follow-up to the START I
treaty, which expired in December 2009, the proposed START II
treaty, which never entered into force, and the START III
treaty, for which negotiations were never concluded.
Under terms of the treaty, the number of strategic nuclear missile launchers will be reduced by half. A new inspection and verification regime will be established, replacing the SORT mechanism. It does not limit the number of operationally inactive stockpiled nuclear warheads, that remain in the high thousands in both the Russian and American inventories.
s equipped for nuclear armaments to 800. The number of deployed ICBMs, SLBMs, and heavy bombers equipped for nuclear armaments is limited to 700. The treaty allows for satellite and remote monitoring, as well as 18 on-site inspections per year to verify limits.
These obligations must be met within seven years from the date the treaty enters into force. The treaty will last ten years, with an option to renew it for up to five years upon agreement of both parties. The treaty will enter into force when the United States and Russia exchange instruments of ratification, following approval by the U.S. Senate and the Federal Assembly of Russia
. However, the United States began implementing the reductions even before the treaty was ratified.
Documents made available to the U.S. Senate described removal from service of at least 30 missile silos, 34 bombers and 56 submarine launch tubes, though missiles removed would not be destroyed and bombers could be converted to conventional use. While 4 of 24 launchers on each of the 14 nuclear submarine
s would be removed, none would be retired.
The treaty places no limits on tactical systems, such as the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, even though the F-35 may replace the Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit in the manned nuclear armed penetration bomber role.
The treaty does not cover rail-mobile ICBM launchers
because neither side currently possesses such systems. ICBMs on such launchers would be covered under the generic launcher limits, but the inspection details for such systems would have to be worked out between the parties if such systems were reintroduced in the future.
. The START II
was signed, but not ratified. The START III
negotiating process was not successful.
The drafting of the treaty commenced in April 2009 immediately after the meeting between the presidents of the two countries, Barack Obama
and Dmitry Medvedev
, in London. Preliminary talks were already held in Rome on 27 April, although it was originally planned to have them held in the middle of May.
Prolonged talks were conducted by U.S. and Russian delegations, led on the American side by U.S. State Department Assistant Secretary Rose Gottemoeller
. The Russian delegation was headed by Anatoly Antonov, director of security and disarmament at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Talks were held on:
On the morning of 6 July, the agreement on the text of the "Joint Understanding on Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms" was announced, which was signed by Medvedev and Obama during the US Presidential visit to Moscow the same day. The document listed the intention of both parties to reduce the number of nuclear warheads to 1,500 – 1,675 units, as well as their delivery weapons to 500 – 1,100 units.
Presidents Obama and Medvedev announced on 26 March 2010 that they had reached an agreement, and they signed the treaty on 8 April 2010 in Prague
.
for ratification in the U.S. Senate. Ratification required 67 votes in favor (out of 100 Senators). On Tuesday, 16 September 2010 the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 14–4 in favor of ratifying New START. The measure had support from three Senate Republicans: Richard Lugar of Indiana, Bob Corker
of Tennessee, and Johnny Isakson
of Georgia. Senator John Kerry and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have expressed optimism that a deal on ratification was near.
Republicans in the Senate generally deferred to Jon Kyl
(R-AZ), a leading conservative on defense issues, who sought a strong commitment to modernize U.S. nuclear forces, and questioned whether there was time for ratification during the lame duck session, calling for an opening of the negotiation record before a vote is held. Senator Ben Nelson
(D-NE) joined Kyl in expressing skepticism over the timing of ratification, and Senator Kit Bond
(R-MO) has expressed opposition.
Obama made New START ratification a priority during the 2010 post-election lame duck
session of Congress, and Senators John Kerry
(D-MA) and Richard Lugar (R-IN), the Democratic Chairman and senior Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, were leading supporters of the treaty.
On 22 December 2010, the U.S. Senate
gave its advice and consent to ratification of the treaty, by a vote of 71 to 26 on the resolution or ratification. Thirteen Republican Senators crossed party lines to vote in favor of the resolution, along with all 56 Democratic senators and both Independent senators.
Obama signed documents completing the U.S. ratification process on 2 February 2011.
. On 6 July, the State Duma held parliamentary hearings on the treaty, which was attended by representatives from the Foreign Ministry and General Staff. On 8 July, the Duma Defense Committee and the International Affairs Committee recommended that the State Duma ratify the treaty.
However, on 29 October, the chairman of the Duma International Affairs Committee, Konstantin Kosachev, called for the return of the document to committee hearings, noting that the agreement does not restrict the activities of the United States on missile defense, as well as the fact that ballistic missiles with non-nuclear warheads are not covered under the agreement. At the same time, Federation Council Chairman Sergei Mironov proposed not to rush to the amendment, or vote on the treaty, and to monitor the discussions in the U.S. Senate.
Following ratification by the U.S. Senate, the formal first reading of the treaty was held on 24 December and the State Duma voted its approval. The State Duma approved a second reading of the treaty on 14 January 2011. Three hundred and forty-nine deputies out of 450 voted in favor of ratification.
The third and final reading by the State Duma took place on 25 January 2011 and the ratification resolution was approved by a vote of 350 deputies in favor, 96 against, and one abstention. It was then approved unanimously by the Federation Council
on the next day.
On 28 January 2011, Medvedev signed the ratification resolution passed by the Federal Assembly, completing the Russian ratification process. The treaty went into force when Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton exchanged the instruments of ratification at the Security Conference
in Munich, Germany, on 5 February 2011.
and in the lame-duck congressional session afterward. While one public opinion poll showed broad support for ratification, another showed general skepticism over nuclear arms reductions.
The Arms Control Association
led efforts to rally political support, arguing that the treaty is needed to restore on-site verification and lend predictability to the U.S.-Russian strategic relationship. Other organizations supporting the treaty include the Federation of American Scientists
, and disarmament expert Peter Wilk of Physicians for Social Responsibility
called the New START treaty “essential” to ensuring a safer world and stronger diplomatic ties with Russia.
Republican supporters included former President George H. W. Bush and all six former Republican Secretaries of State, who wrote supportive op-eds in the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. Conservative columnist Robert Kagan
, who supported the treaty, says its goals are actually modest compared to previous START treaties and that the treaty should not fail because of partisan disagreements. Kagan said the Republican insistence on upgrading the U.S. nuclear arsenal was reasonable but would not be affected by the current language of the treaty.
The Heritage Action for America
advocacy group, an affiliate of the Heritage Foundation
, took the lead in opposing New START, lobbying the Senate along with running a petition drive and airing political advertisements before November's midterm elections. The effort drew the support of likely presidential candidate Mitt Romney
, and has been credited by former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle as changing some Republican votes. According to Heritage Foundation President Ed Feulner, the language of the New START treaty would "definitely" reduce America's nuclear weapon capacity but "wouldn't necessarily" reduce Russia's, and Russia would maintain a 10–1 advantage in tactical nuclear weapon
s, which are not counted in the treaty.
Arms control experts critical of the treaty included Robert Joseph, former undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, and Eric Edelman, undersecretary of defense for policy, who have written that the treaty weakens U.S. defenses. Former CIA Director James Woolsey also said that "concessions to Russian demands make it difficult to support Senate approval of the new treaty".
Senators Jon Kyl
and Mitch McConnell
complained about a lack of funding for the Next-Generation Bomber during the treaty debate even though this platform would not be constrained by this treaty.
During the Senatorial debate over the US ratification of the New START Treaty with Russia, Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) stated that "Russia cheats in every arms control treaty we have with them", which caused a uproar in Russian media. Additionally, there were concerns about the possibility of restrictions being imposed on the deployment of missile defense
systems by the U.S.
The data that follows were made public under the prior START treaty.
Nuclear disarmament
Nuclear disarmament refers to both the act of reducing or eliminating nuclear weapons and to the end state of a nuclear-free world, in which nuclear weapons are completely eliminated....
treaty
Treaty
A treaty is an express agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely sovereign states and international organizations. A treaty may also be known as an agreement, protocol, covenant, convention or exchange of letters, among other terms...
between the United States of America and the Russian Federation with the formal name of Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. It was signed on 8 April 2010 in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, and, after ratification, entered into force on 5 February 2011. It is expected to last at least until 2021.
New START replaced the Treaty of Moscow (SORT
SORT
The Treaty Between the United States of America and the Russian Federation on Strategic Offensive Reductions , also known as the Treaty of Moscow, was a strategic arms reduction treaty between the United States and Russia that was in force from June 2003 until February 2011 when it was superseded...
), which was due to expire in December 2012. In terms of name, it is a follow-up to the START I
START I
START was a bilateral treaty between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. The treaty was signed on 31 July 1991 and entered into force on 5 December 1994...
treaty, which expired in December 2009, the proposed START II
START II
START II was a bilateral treaty between the United States of America and Russia on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. It was signed by United States President George H. W...
treaty, which never entered into force, and the START III
START III
START III was a proposed bi-lateral nuclear disarmament treaty between the United States and Russia. It meant to drastically reduce the deployed nuclear weapons arsenals of both countries and to continue the weapons reduction efforts that had taken place in the START I and START II negotiations...
treaty, for which negotiations were never concluded.
Under terms of the treaty, the number of strategic nuclear missile launchers will be reduced by half. A new inspection and verification regime will be established, replacing the SORT mechanism. It does not limit the number of operationally inactive stockpiled nuclear warheads, that remain in the high thousands in both the Russian and American inventories.
Overview
Under the terms of the treaty, the number of strategic nuclear missile launchers will be reduced by half. The treaty limits the number of deployed strategic nuclear warheads to 1,550, which is down nearly two-thirds from the original START treaty, as well as 10% lower than the deployed strategic warhead limit of the 2002 Moscow Treaty. The total number of deployed warheads, however, could exceed the 1,550 limit by a few hundred because per bomber only one warhead is counted regardless of how many it actually carries. It will also limit the number of deployed and non-deployed inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) launchers, submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) launchers, and heavy bomberHeavy bomber
A heavy bomber is a bomber aircraft of the largest size and load carrying capacity, and usually the longest range.In New START, the term "heavy bomber" is used for two types of bombers:*one with a range greater than 8,000 kilometers...
s equipped for nuclear armaments to 800. The number of deployed ICBMs, SLBMs, and heavy bombers equipped for nuclear armaments is limited to 700. The treaty allows for satellite and remote monitoring, as well as 18 on-site inspections per year to verify limits.
| Type | Limit |
|---|---|
| Deployed missiles and bombers | 700 |
| Deployed warheads (RV Multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle A multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle warhead is a collection of nuclear weapons carried on a single intercontinental ballistic missile or a submarine-launched ballistic missile . Using a MIRV warhead, a single launched missile can strike several targets, or fewer targets redundantly... s and bombers) |
1550 |
| Deployed and Non-deployed Launchers (missile tubes and bombers) | 800 |
These obligations must be met within seven years from the date the treaty enters into force. The treaty will last ten years, with an option to renew it for up to five years upon agreement of both parties. The treaty will enter into force when the United States and Russia exchange instruments of ratification, following approval by the U.S. Senate and the Federal Assembly of Russia
Federal Assembly of Russia
The Federal Assembly of Russia is the legislature of the Russian Federation, according to the Constitution of Russian Federation, 1993...
. However, the United States began implementing the reductions even before the treaty was ratified.
Documents made available to the U.S. Senate described removal from service of at least 30 missile silos, 34 bombers and 56 submarine launch tubes, though missiles removed would not be destroyed and bombers could be converted to conventional use. While 4 of 24 launchers on each of the 14 nuclear submarine
Nuclear submarine
A nuclear submarine is a submarine powered by a nuclear reactor . The performance advantages of nuclear submarines over "conventional" submarines are considerable: nuclear propulsion, being completely independent of air, frees the submarine from the need to surface frequently, as is necessary for...
s would be removed, none would be retired.
The treaty places no limits on tactical systems, such as the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, even though the F-35 may replace the Northrop Grumman B-2 Spirit in the manned nuclear armed penetration bomber role.
The treaty does not cover rail-mobile ICBM launchers
RT-23 Molodets
The RT-23 was a Soviet ICBM developed and produced by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau before 1991. It is cold launched, and comes in silo and railway car based variants...
because neither side currently possesses such systems. ICBMs on such launchers would be covered under the generic launcher limits, but the inspection details for such systems would have to be worked out between the parties if such systems were reintroduced in the future.
Drafting and signature
The New START treaty is the successor to the START ISTART I
START was a bilateral treaty between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. The treaty was signed on 31 July 1991 and entered into force on 5 December 1994...
. The START II
START II
START II was a bilateral treaty between the United States of America and Russia on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. It was signed by United States President George H. W...
was signed, but not ratified. The START III
START III
START III was a proposed bi-lateral nuclear disarmament treaty between the United States and Russia. It meant to drastically reduce the deployed nuclear weapons arsenals of both countries and to continue the weapons reduction efforts that had taken place in the START I and START II negotiations...
negotiating process was not successful.
The drafting of the treaty commenced in April 2009 immediately after the meeting between the presidents of the two countries, Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
and Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev is the third President of the Russian Federation.Born to a family of academics, Medvedev graduated from the Law Department of Leningrad State University in 1987. He defended his dissertation in 1990 and worked as a docent at his alma mater, now renamed to Saint...
, in London. Preliminary talks were already held in Rome on 27 April, although it was originally planned to have them held in the middle of May.
Prolonged talks were conducted by U.S. and Russian delegations, led on the American side by U.S. State Department Assistant Secretary Rose Gottemoeller
Rose Gottemoeller
Rose Gottemoeller was sworn in as the United States Assistant Secretary of State for Verification, Compliance, and Implementation on April 6, 2009...
. The Russian delegation was headed by Anatoly Antonov, director of security and disarmament at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Talks were held on:
- First round: 19–20 May, Moscow
- Second round: 1–3 June, Geneva
- Third round: 22–24 June, Geneva
- Fourth round: 22–24 July, Geneva
- Fifth Round: 5–7 September, Geneva
- Sixth round: 21–28 September, Geneva
- Seventh round: 19–30 October, Geneva
- Eighth round: 9 November, Geneva
On the morning of 6 July, the agreement on the text of the "Joint Understanding on Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms" was announced, which was signed by Medvedev and Obama during the US Presidential visit to Moscow the same day. The document listed the intention of both parties to reduce the number of nuclear warheads to 1,500 – 1,675 units, as well as their delivery weapons to 500 – 1,100 units.
Presidents Obama and Medvedev announced on 26 March 2010 that they had reached an agreement, and they signed the treaty on 8 April 2010 in Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
.
United States
On 13 May, the agreement was submitted by U.S. President Barack ObamaBarack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
for ratification in the U.S. Senate. Ratification required 67 votes in favor (out of 100 Senators). On Tuesday, 16 September 2010 the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 14–4 in favor of ratifying New START. The measure had support from three Senate Republicans: Richard Lugar of Indiana, Bob Corker
Bob Corker
Robert Phillips "Bob" Corker, Jr. is the junior United States Senator from Tennessee. Before his election to the Senate in 2006, he served as mayor of Chattanooga, Tennessee from 2001 to 2005. Corker was a businessman prior to holding public office.-Early life and family:Born in Orangeburg, South...
of Tennessee, and Johnny Isakson
Johnny Isakson
John Hardy "Johnny" Isakson is the junior United States Senator from Georgia and a member of the Republican Party. Previously, he represented in the House....
of Georgia. Senator John Kerry and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have expressed optimism that a deal on ratification was near.
Republicans in the Senate generally deferred to Jon Kyl
Jon Kyl
Jon Llewellyn Kyl is the junior U.S. Senator from Arizona and the Senate Minority Whip, the second-highest position in the Republican Senate leadership. In 2010 he was recognized by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world for his persuasive role in the Senate.The son...
(R-AZ), a leading conservative on defense issues, who sought a strong commitment to modernize U.S. nuclear forces, and questioned whether there was time for ratification during the lame duck session, calling for an opening of the negotiation record before a vote is held. Senator Ben Nelson
Ben Nelson
Earl Benjamin "Ben" Nelson is the senior U.S. Senator from Nebraska. He is a member of the Democratic Party and was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2000....
(D-NE) joined Kyl in expressing skepticism over the timing of ratification, and Senator Kit Bond
Kit Bond
Christopher Samuel "Kit" Bond is a former United States Senator from Missouri and a member of the Republican Party. First elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, he defeated Democrat Harriett Woods by a margin of 53%-47%. He was re-elected in 1992, 1998, and 2004...
(R-MO) has expressed opposition.
Obama made New START ratification a priority during the 2010 post-election lame duck
Lame duck (politics)
A lame duck is an elected official who is approaching the end of his or her tenure, and especially an official whose successor has already been elected.-Description:The status can be due to*having lost a re-election bid...
session of Congress, and Senators John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
(D-MA) and Richard Lugar (R-IN), the Democratic Chairman and senior Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, were leading supporters of the treaty.
On 22 December 2010, the U.S. Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
gave its advice and consent to ratification of the treaty, by a vote of 71 to 26 on the resolution or ratification. Thirteen Republican Senators crossed party lines to vote in favor of the resolution, along with all 56 Democratic senators and both Independent senators.
Obama signed documents completing the U.S. ratification process on 2 February 2011.
Russia
On 28 May 2010, the document was introduced by Medvedev for consideration in the State DumaState Duma
The State Duma , common abbreviation: Госду́ма ) in the Russian Federation is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , the upper house being the Federation Council of Russia. The Duma headquarters is located in central Moscow, a few steps from Manege Square. Its members are referred to...
. On 6 July, the State Duma held parliamentary hearings on the treaty, which was attended by representatives from the Foreign Ministry and General Staff. On 8 July, the Duma Defense Committee and the International Affairs Committee recommended that the State Duma ratify the treaty.
However, on 29 October, the chairman of the Duma International Affairs Committee, Konstantin Kosachev, called for the return of the document to committee hearings, noting that the agreement does not restrict the activities of the United States on missile defense, as well as the fact that ballistic missiles with non-nuclear warheads are not covered under the agreement. At the same time, Federation Council Chairman Sergei Mironov proposed not to rush to the amendment, or vote on the treaty, and to monitor the discussions in the U.S. Senate.
Following ratification by the U.S. Senate, the formal first reading of the treaty was held on 24 December and the State Duma voted its approval. The State Duma approved a second reading of the treaty on 14 January 2011. Three hundred and forty-nine deputies out of 450 voted in favor of ratification.
The third and final reading by the State Duma took place on 25 January 2011 and the ratification resolution was approved by a vote of 350 deputies in favor, 96 against, and one abstention. It was then approved unanimously by the Federation Council
Federation Council of Russia
Federation Council of Russia ) is the upper house of the Federal Assembly of Russia , according to the 1993 Constitution of the Russian Federation...
on the next day.
On 28 January 2011, Medvedev signed the ratification resolution passed by the Federal Assembly, completing the Russian ratification process. The treaty went into force when Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton exchanged the instruments of ratification at the Security Conference
Munich Conference on Security Policy
The Munich Conference on Security Policy is an annual conference on international security policy that is held in the Hotel Bayerischer Hof in Munich, Germany.The 47th Munich Security Conference will be held from February 4th through February 6th 2011....
in Munich, Germany, on 5 February 2011.
Deadlines
The New START Treaty requires a number of specific actions within periods after Entry into Force (EIF)- No Later than (NLT) 5 days after EIF
- Exchange Inspection Airplane Information:
- Lists of the types of airplanes intended to transport inspectors to points of entry will be exchanged.
- NLT 25 days after EIF
- Exchange Lists of Inspectors and Aircrew Members:
- Lists of initial inspectors and aircrew will be exchanged.
- NLT 45 days after EIF
- Exchange databases:
- Databases will provide information on the numbers, locations, and technical characteristics of weapon systems and facilities that are covered under the Treaty.
- NLT 60 days after EIF
- Exhibition: Strategic Offensive Arms:
- If a type, variant, or version of a strategic offensive arm (SOA) that was not exhibited in connection with the START Treaty is declared, then the SOA's features and technical characteristics must be demonstrated and confirmed.
- 60 days after EIF
- Right to Conduct Inspections Begins:
- Parties may begin inspections, 18 on-site inspections per year are provided in the Treaty. Each Party is allowed ten Type One Inspections and eight Type Two Inspections.
-
- Type One Inspections focus on deployed and non-deployed SOAs sites. Activities include confirming accuracy of data on SOAs, the number of warheads located on designated deployed ICBMs and SLBMs, and the number of nuclear armaments to be on designated deployed heavy bombers.
- Type Two Inspections focus on sites with non-deployed SOAs. They can involve confirmation of the conversion/elimination of SOAs, and confirming the elimination of facilities.
-
- NLT 120 days after EIF
- Exhibition: Heavy Bombers at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base:
- The United States will conduct a one-time exhibition of each type of environmentally-sealed deployed heavy bombers located at the storage facility at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona.
- NLT 180 days after EIF
- Initial Demonstration of Telemetry Playback Equipment:
- Parties will conduct an initial demonstration of recording media and playback equipment for telemetric information, information that originates on a missile during its initial motion and flight.
- NLT 225 days after EIF
- Exchange Updated Databases:
- Parties will exchange updated databases and every six months thereafter for the duration of the Treaty.
- NLT 1 year after EIF
- Exhibition: B-1B Heavy Bomber:
- The United States will conduct a one-time exhibition of a B-1B heavy bomber equipped with non-nuclear armaments to demonstrate it no longer can employ nuclear armaments.
- NLT 3 years after EIF
- Exhibition: Previously Converted Missile Launchers:
- The United States will conduct a one-time exhibition of its four SSGNs, which are equipped with cruise missile launchers and were converted from nuclear ballistic submarines, to confirm that SSGNs cannot launch SLBMs. The United States will also hold an exhibition of the five converted ICBM launcher silos at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, now used as missile defense interceptor launchers. This will confirm that the converted launchers are no longer able to launch ICBMs and determine the features to distinguish converted silo launchers from unconverted ones.
- NLT 7 years after EIF
- Meet Central Treaty Limits:
- Parties are required to meet the limits laid out in the Treaty for deployed strategic warheads, and deployed and non-deployed strategic delivery vehicles and launchers.
- 10 years after EIF
- Treaty Expires:
- Unless Parties agree with an extension for up to five years.
U.S. public debate
In the United States, a debate about whether to ratify the treaty took place during the lead-up to the 2010 midterm electionsUnited States elections, 2010
The 2010 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010. During this midterm election year, all 435 seats in the United States House of Representatives and 37 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate were contested in this election along with 38 state and territorial...
and in the lame-duck congressional session afterward. While one public opinion poll showed broad support for ratification, another showed general skepticism over nuclear arms reductions.
The Arms Control Association
Arms Control Association
The Arms Control Association is a US-based national nonpartisan membership organization founded in 1971 with the self-stated mission of promoting public understanding of and support for effective arms control policies...
led efforts to rally political support, arguing that the treaty is needed to restore on-site verification and lend predictability to the U.S.-Russian strategic relationship. Other organizations supporting the treaty include the Federation of American Scientists
Federation of American Scientists
The Federation of American Scientists is a nonpartisan, 501 organization intent on using science and scientific analysis to attempt make the world more secure. FAS was founded in 1945 by scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project to develop the first atomic bombs...
, and disarmament expert Peter Wilk of Physicians for Social Responsibility
Physicians for Social Responsibility
Physicians for Social Responsibility is the largest physician-led organization in the USA working to protect the public from the what they consider threats of nuclear proliferation, climate change, and environmental toxins...
called the New START treaty “essential” to ensuring a safer world and stronger diplomatic ties with Russia.
Republican supporters included former President George H. W. Bush and all six former Republican Secretaries of State, who wrote supportive op-eds in the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. Conservative columnist Robert Kagan
Robert Kagan
Robert Kagan is an American historian and foreign policy commentator.-Early life and education:Kagan graduated from Yale University in 1980 where he was tapped by Skull and Bones, studied history, and founded the Yale Political Monthly. He later earned an MPP from the John F...
, who supported the treaty, says its goals are actually modest compared to previous START treaties and that the treaty should not fail because of partisan disagreements. Kagan said the Republican insistence on upgrading the U.S. nuclear arsenal was reasonable but would not be affected by the current language of the treaty.
The Heritage Action for America
Heritage Action for America
Heritage Action for America is a conservative policy advocacy organization, founded in 2010. Heritage Action works with conservative citizen activists nationwide to generate support for public policy proposals in the U.S. Congress. The organization has state operations in North Carolina and...
advocacy group, an affiliate of the Heritage Foundation
Heritage Foundation
The Heritage Foundation is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong...
, took the lead in opposing New START, lobbying the Senate along with running a petition drive and airing political advertisements before November's midterm elections. The effort drew the support of likely presidential candidate Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...
, and has been credited by former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle as changing some Republican votes. According to Heritage Foundation President Ed Feulner, the language of the New START treaty would "definitely" reduce America's nuclear weapon capacity but "wouldn't necessarily" reduce Russia's, and Russia would maintain a 10–1 advantage in tactical nuclear weapon
Tactical nuclear weapon
A tactical nuclear weapon refers to a nuclear weapon which is designed to be used on a battlefield in military situations. This is as opposed to strategic nuclear weapons which are designed to menace large populations, to damage the enemy's ability to wage war, or for general deterrence...
s, which are not counted in the treaty.
Arms control experts critical of the treaty included Robert Joseph, former undersecretary of state for arms control and international security, and Eric Edelman, undersecretary of defense for policy, who have written that the treaty weakens U.S. defenses. Former CIA Director James Woolsey also said that "concessions to Russian demands make it difficult to support Senate approval of the new treaty".
Senators Jon Kyl
Jon Kyl
Jon Llewellyn Kyl is the junior U.S. Senator from Arizona and the Senate Minority Whip, the second-highest position in the Republican Senate leadership. In 2010 he was recognized by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world for his persuasive role in the Senate.The son...
and Mitch McConnell
Mitch McConnell
Addison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr. is the senior United States Senator from Kentucky and the Republican Minority Leader.- Early life, education, and military service :...
complained about a lack of funding for the Next-Generation Bomber during the treaty debate even though this platform would not be constrained by this treaty.
During the Senatorial debate over the US ratification of the New START Treaty with Russia, Senator James Inhofe (R-OK) stated that "Russia cheats in every arms control treaty we have with them", which caused a uproar in Russian media. Additionally, there were concerns about the possibility of restrictions being imposed on the deployment of missile defense
Missile defense
Missile defense is a system, weapon, or technology involved in the detection, tracking, interception and destruction of attacking missiles. Originally conceived as a defence against nuclear-armed Intercontinental ballistic missiles , its application has broadened to include shorter-ranged...
systems by the U.S.
Status of the strategic forces of Russia and the U.S.
Current information on the aggregate numbers and locations of nuclear weapons have not yet been made public under the New START treaty, and on 13 May 2011 three former U.S. officials and two non-proliferation experts signed an open letter to both sides asking that the information be released, in order to promote transparency, reduce mistrust, and support the nuclear arms control process in other states.| State | Deployed ICBMs, Deployed SLBMs, and Deployed Heavy Bombers | Warheads on Deployed ICBMs, Deployed SLBMs, and Nuclear Warheads Counted for Deployed Heavy Bombers | Deployed and Non-deployed Launchers of ICBMs and SLBMs, and Deployed and Non-deployed Heavy Bombers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Russian Federation | 516 | 1,566 | 871 |
| United States of America | 822 | 1,790 | 1,043 |
The data that follows were made public under the prior START treaty.
| State | Deployed ICBMs and Their Associated Launchers, Deployed SLBMs and Their Associated Launchers, and Deployed Heavy Bombers | Warheads Attributed to Deployed ICBMs, Deployed SLBMs, and Deployed Heavy Bombers | Warheads Attributed to Deployed ICBMs and Deployed SLBMs | Throw-weight of Deployed ICBMs and Deployed SLBMs (MT) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Russian Federation | 809 | 3,897 | 3,289 | 2,297.0 |
| United States of America | 1,188 | 5,916 | 4,864 | 1,857.3 |
| Delivery Vehicles | Warheads | |
|---|---|---|
| R-36M UTTH / M2 (SS-18 M4/M5) | 68 | 680 |
| UR-100 UR-100 The UR-100 was an intercontinental ballistic missile developed and deployed by the Soviet Union from 1966 to 1996. УР in its designation stands for "универсальная ракета"... NUTTH (SS-19) |
72 | 432 |
| RT-2PM Topol mobile (SS-25) | 180 | 180 |
| RT-2PM2 Topol M silo (SS-27) | 50 | 50 |
| RT-2PM2 Topol M mobile (SS-27 M1) | 15 | 15 |
| RS-24 RS-24 The RS-24 Yars is a Russian MIRV-equipped, thermonuclear intercontinental ballistic missile first tested on May 29, 2007 after a secret military R&D project, to replace the older R-36 and UR-100N that have been already used almost for 50 years. RS-24 is a missile that is heavier than the current... Yars mobile (SS-27 Mod-X-2) |
0 | 0 |
| ICBM (total) | 383 | 1,355 |
| R-29 RL (SS-N-18) | 4/64 | 192 |
| R-29 RM (SS-N-23) | 3/48 | 192 |
| R-29 RMU Sineva (SS-N-23) | 3/48 | 192 |
| RSM-56 Bulava (SS-NX-32) | (2/0) | 0 |
| SLBM (total) | 10/160 | 576 |
| TU-95 MS6 (Bear H6) | 32 | 192 |
| TU-95 MS16 (Bear H16) | 31 | 496 |
| TU-160 (Blackjack) | 14 | 168 |
| Bomber force (total) | 77 | 856 |
| Strategic forces (total) | 620 | 2,787 |
| Delivery Vehicles | Warheads | |
|---|---|---|
| Minuteman III W78/Mk12A | 250 | 350 |
| Minuteman III W87/Mk21 | 200 | 200 |
| ICBM (total) | 450 | 550 |
| UGM-133A UGM-133 Trident II UGM-133 Trident II, or Trident D5 is a submarine-launched ballistic missile, built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Sunnyvale, California, and deployed with the US Navy and Royal Navy. It was first deployed in 1990, and is still in service.... Trident II D-5 W76-0/Mk4 |
288 | 718 |
| UGM-133A UGM-133 Trident II UGM-133 Trident II, or Trident D5 is a submarine-launched ballistic missile, built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Sunnyvale, California, and deployed with the US Navy and Royal Navy. It was first deployed in 1990, and is still in service.... Trident II D-5 W76-1/Mk4A |
50 | |
| UGM-133A UGM-133 Trident II UGM-133 Trident II, or Trident D5 is a submarine-launched ballistic missile, built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Sunnyvale, California, and deployed with the US Navy and Royal Navy. It was first deployed in 1990, and is still in service.... Trident II D-5 W88/Mk5 |
384 | |
| SLBM (total) | 288 | 1,152 |
| B-2 | 20 | na |
| B-52H | 93 | na |
| B61 B61 nuclear bomb The B61 nuclear bomb is the primary thermonuclear weapon in the U.S. Enduring Stockpile following the end of the Cold War. It is an intermediate yield strategic and tactical nuclear weapon featuring a two-stage radiation implosion design.... -7 |
na | 150 |
| B61-11 | na | |
| B-83 | na | |
| ALCM/W80-1 | na | 350 |
| Bomber force (total) | 113 | 500 |
| Strategic forces (total) | 851 | 2,200 |
See also
- START ISTART ISTART was a bilateral treaty between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. The treaty was signed on 31 July 1991 and entered into force on 5 December 1994...
- START IISTART IISTART II was a bilateral treaty between the United States of America and Russia on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. It was signed by United States President George H. W...
- START IIISTART IIISTART III was a proposed bi-lateral nuclear disarmament treaty between the United States and Russia. It meant to drastically reduce the deployed nuclear weapons arsenals of both countries and to continue the weapons reduction efforts that had taken place in the START I and START II negotiations...
- SORTSORTThe Treaty Between the United States of America and the Russian Federation on Strategic Offensive Reductions , also known as the Treaty of Moscow, was a strategic arms reduction treaty between the United States and Russia that was in force from June 2003 until February 2011 when it was superseded...
- SALT I and IIStrategic Arms Limitation TalksThe Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty refers to two rounds of bilateral talks and corresponding international treaties involving the United States and the Soviet Union—the Cold War superpowers—on the issue of armament control. There were two rounds of talks and agreements: SALT I and SALT...
- 2010 NPT Review Conference2010 NPT Review ConferenceIn May, the 2010 Review Conference for the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons was held at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 3 to 28 May 2010. The President of the Review Conference is Ambassador Libran N. Cabactulan of the Philippines...
External links
- New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) from the United States Department of StateUnited States Department of StateThe United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
- The New START Treaty and Protocol from Whitehouse.govWhitehouse.govWhitehouse.gov is the official website of the White House and is owned by the United States government. Launched in October 1994, it contains general American history information, as well as current news pertaining to the President, press briefings, proclamations, executive orders, and any speeches...
- Jonathan Schell Says U.S.-Russia "Nuclear Standoff" Defies "Rational Explanation" – video report by Democracy Now!Democracy Now!Democracy Now! and its staff have received several journalism awards, including the Gracie Award from American Women in Radio & Television; the George Polk Award for its 1998 radio documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, on the Chevron Corporation and the deaths of...