Nonstrategic Nuclear Weapons

In recent years the US/NATO has sought Russian agreement to increase transparency on Russian NSNWs in the European part of the country and relocate these weapons away from the territory of NATO member states; and Russia, in its part, has insisted on the complete withdrawal of the U.S. NSNWs from Europe. But this endless circle does not promise much room for negotiations.

At the same time, among these demands – withdrawal, relocating and transparency – only the latter is potentially attainable in the near future. While possible decisions upon withdrawal or relocating refer to military domain where a corresponding agreement is rather unachievable at the current stage, transparency is a matter of trust building and thus a matter of political will. Hence, the possibility to reach a political agreement on NSNW transparency between US/NATO and Russia still remains.

PIR Center’s Project is aimed at analyzing the current position of Russia, the United States and other NATO countries on the NSNW arms control issue and associated problems. The project also examines how the forward-deployed U.S. NSNWs in Europe affect the perception of the NSNW issue in the military-political leadership of Russia.

Publications:

1. On the Issue of Nonstrategic (Tactical) Nuclear Weapons, Russia Confidential, N3, 2012

2. The Future of Nonstrategic Nuclear Weapons in Europe: there are some options (in Russian), Indeks Bezopasnosti, № 3-4 (102-103), 2012