Nuclear Arms Control Talks Hinge on U.S. Goodwill: Kremlin
For Prelims
About New START Treaty
- The New START Treaty is an arms reduction treaty between the United States of America and the Russian Federation on measures to further reduce and limit strategic offensive arms.
- It entered into force on 5th February, 2011.
- It was supposed to have expired in 2021 but was extended for a period of another 5 years.
- It succeeded the START framework of 1991 which limited the USA and USSR to 1,600 strategic delivery vehicles and 6,000 warheads.
About Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START)
- The idea behind START was initially proposed by the then US President Ronald Reagan.
- The treaty was signed on 31 July 1991 and entered into force on 5 December 1994.
- START is considered the largest and most complex arms control treaty in history.
- Its final implementation in late 2001 is said to have resulted in the removal of about 80% of all strategic nuclear weapons in existence.
What are Strategic arms?
- A strategic weapon can be defined as any weapons system designed to strike an enemy at the source of his military, economic, or political power.
- The commonly accepted weapons include, Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missiles (SLBMs), Cruise Missiles, etc which can carry a nuclear warhead.
- Currently due to the emergence of cyber warfare techniques, advanced AI systems which can target enemy infrastructure are also considered as strategic weapons.
Source The Hindu
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