We’ve also seen a change in approach from the People’s Republic of China.īy 2035, the PRC is on track to have as many as 1,500 nuclear warheads-one of the largest peacetime nuclear build-ups in history.īut unlike Russia-who is threatening to walk away from the negotiating table, from the arms control agreements our countries have relied upon for years-the PRC has thus far opted not to come to the table for substantive dialogue on arms control.
#Race into space interplay full
Russia’s actions have been dealing body blows to the post-Cold war nuclear arms control framework.īut it’s not just Russia that we have to look to, to consider the full scope of the context we find ourselves in today with respect to nuclear security and stability. Only a month later, President Putin began to take steps to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.Īnd, as we all saw just a few days ago, Putin formally announced that he will withdraw from the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe-putting the final nail in the coffin of an agreement that once served as a cornerstone of European security, which Moscow began violating years ago.īut even prior to Russia’s brutal assault against Ukraine, Putin has been destabilizing the nuclear foundation our forebearers laid.įor years, he’s advanced the development of dangerous new nuclear capabilities, like radiation-spewing, nuclear-powered cruise missiles-all while modernizing and stockpiling old capabilities that aren’t regulated by arms control agreements-like theater-range missiles and torpedoes. Last year, Russian forces recklessly attacked and seized the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in Ukraine-the largest operational nuclear plant in Europe-with little concern for the potential catastrophic consequences of a nuclear incident.Įarlier this year, President Putin unlawfully suspended Russia’s implementation of the New START Treaty that places limits on the most destructive weapons in our arsenals-the kinds that could destroy the world many times over. I’ll start with the cracks in the foundation that we see-the new threats that are challenging the post-Cold War nuclear order.Īnd then I’ll walk through how we’re trying to adapt both our nuclear deterrence and our arms control strategies to meet this moment.Īs we’ve all seen recently, some of the major cracks in our nuclear foundation have come from Russia. So today, I’d like to lay out what we’re endeavoring to do in pursuit of this. That is the foundation of nuclear stability and security that we’ve depended on for decades.Īnd it’s the foundation that the Arms Control Association has helped to uphold across generations.īut over the last few years-that foundation has begun to erode.Īnd today, we now stand at what our President would call an “inflection point” in our nuclear stability and security.Ī point that demands new strategies for achieving the same goal we’ve held since the Cold War: Reduce the risk of nuclear conflict. But for the security and stability of the world.Īnd as this group knows well, it was one of the first steps that would help slowly usher in an era of responsible arms control and nuclear deterrence measures.Īn era where nations could compartmentalize the issues of strategic stability, even if they couldn’t cooperate on much anything else.Īn era where adversaries could disagree and debate across basically every domain, but could always find ways to work together to limit nuclear risks.Īn era where world leaders chose transparency even during times of tension-especially during times of tension-because what was at stake was too important, too vital to our shared future. “I speak to you tonight in a spirit of hope…Negotiations were concluded in Moscow on a treaty to ban all nuclear tests…”Īfter years of non-stop negotiations, or stop-and-start negotiations to be more precise-Įstablishing the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty was a huge moment. He was sitting behind the same Resolute desk that President Biden sits behind now nearly every day, and that I sit across from him nearly every day. I also want to thank Daryl for bringing us all together today.Īnd most importantly-I want to thank all of you for giving me the opportunity to just say a few words here this morning.Ħ0 years ago next month-in grainy, black and white video-President Kennedy addressed the nation. Thank you, Tom, for that very important set of introductory comments and for the kind words.
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