... redoubled its efforts to maintain a balance of power in the missile and nuclear sphere. While adhering to existing international obligations, the country made notable strides in developing advanced missile systems. Yet, the regime governing missile and nuclear weapons continued to deteriorate. In 2019, the Trump administration initiated the withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. The INF crisis was preceded by years of mutual accusations, fuelled by new technological realities,...
... nuclear weapons bases and exchanged more than 25,000 notifications of military activities in this area, while the Bilateral Consultative Commission held 19 meetings to resolve contentious issues.
It is worth noting that despite the acuteness of the Ukrainian crisis and the widespread discussion of the possibility of nuclear escalation in Russia and abroad, the strategic forces of the U.S. and Russia are not part of this discourse. The focus is instead on tactical nuclear weapons and limited nuclear strikes. This contrasts with the situation during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, when the expectation of massive nuclear strikes by strategic weapons and intermediate-range systems was at the center of public attention....
... offbeat to the overwhelming majority of observers until February 2022. Indeed, it seemed unlikely from the perspective of the past thirty years. And yet, it materialized. Maybe it is time to break down the habitual scheme of things?
Aleksey Arbatov:
The Ukrainian Crisis and Strategic Stability
Regardless of the motives behind this proposal, it requires rational reflection, considering the fundamental importance of the issue. After all, we are talking about nuclear weapons, which are associated not just with a breakdown but with a possible end of everything for everyone. It seems that the preemptive use of nuclear weapons will not solve the issues between Russia and the West. It will significantly aggravate ...
The SMO’s Nuclear Dimension
Virtually immediately after the start of the special military operation (SMO), large-scale warfighting in Ukraine prompted discussions of nuclear weapons-related threats and even of the expediency of using such weapons. At the same time, such comments and statements are mostly highly unprofessional. This article attempts to substantively examine nuclear escalation scenarios. The purpose ...
