The nuclear factor has once again begun to play a significant role in international relations
Autumn is usually a busy season in the nuclear sphere, and 2025 was no exception. In October, NATO held its Steadfast Noon nuclear exercises, followed by the U.S. Global Thunder drills and Russia’s strategic nuclear forces exercises. Developments did not end there: against the backdrop of these exercises, Russia
announced
tests of the
Burevestnik
nuclear-powered cruise missile and the
Poseidon
nuclear-powered...
... conventional operations despite potential defeat; continue tactical nuclear exchanges; or eliminate the adversary by employing strategic nuclear weapons, something that guarantees annihilation by a retaliatory strike.
Aleksey Arbatov:
Nuclear Doctrine and Strategic Stability
This paradigm's inherent danger lies in fostering NATO's illusion of impunity—the conviction that Russia would refrain from nuclear weapons use due to fears of inevitable retaliation. Such perceptions render gradual conventional ...
... build new long-range standoff (
LRSO
) cruise missiles for strategic aviation.
Prospects for strategic stability
Zhao Huasheng, Andrey Kortunov:
Prepare for the Worst and Strive for the Best. Russia’s and China’s Perceptions of Developments in International Security
The concept of strategic stability has many different interpretations, with some broadening it to include the idea of comprehensive security, which inevitably shifts the discussion into the realm of political rhetoric. In contrast, the narrow definition of strategic ...
...
How Can Russia’s Updated Nuclear Doctrine Affect Strategic Security?
Dmitry Stefanovich, Research Fellow at the Center for International Security, Primakov Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO RAS)
Lowering the nuclear threshold ... ... the role of nuclear weapons in meeting these challenges. It is hardly possible to assess the doctrine's impact on the state of strategic stability in its regional and global dimensions in isolation from developments in the situation. For example, the test ...
... Huasheng, Andrey Kortunov:
Prepare for the Worst and Strive for the Best. Russia’s and China’s Perceptions of Developments in International Security
Innovative systems and disruptive technologies
At the short-lived consultations in Geneva that took place ... ... disarmament efforts, it is impossible to do so without drawing on strategic nuclear arms limitations as the bedrock and the concept of strategic stability as a guidebook. Without them, it is impossible to objectively assess the impact of certain weapons or technologies ...
... and are only likely to increase in its aftermath, both Russia and the U.S. may want, at some point, to return to some forms of recurrent bilateral interactions. Although Russia has rejected the recent U.S. proposal to
resum
e systematic dialogue on strategic stability and arms control, both states should continue to seek other opportunities—whether as a track-1.5 format or a less formalized dialogue between officials—to begin bridging the gap between conceptual understandings of military capabilities,...
... 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 the INF Treaty collapsed and Russian proposals to prevent another missile confrontation in Europe possibly rejected, the logical thing to do would be to deploy the revised “Pioneer” missile in response to the new “Pershings” and “Gryphons”
Who is to blame? A seemingly clear-cut answer to this accursed question relevant for the country’s current security concern has recently emerged: the United States and NATO with its U.S.-led enlargement into the post-Soviet space, with them having completely...
... complicated domestic processes both in Russia and in the United States. Without agreements between Moscow and Washington, ensuring international security and stability is impossible.
Second, the summit gave rise to hopes that an opportunity may emerge for uniting ... ... would be a logical and natural extension of the conversation in Geneva.
Third, even though the U.S.–Russia interaction in strategic stability is crucially important, with time, other countries will need to be involved in the process. Russia and the ...
... political dialogue restored, this will open up practical interaction opportunities between the two countries on a number of international security issues that are high on the agenda.
Besides, the upcoming Geneva meeting could send a signal to the U.S.... ...
century.
Ivan Timofeev:
Layered Cake. What to Expect from the Putin-Biden Summit?
There are other equally important dimensions to strategic stability that need to be addressed in Geneva.
Strategic stability implies close cooperation or—at least—coordination ...
