The US and Russia have agreed in principle on a deal to replace the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (Start) that expired in December after 15 years as the centerpiece of nuclear arms control, the Wall Street Journal reports today. The deal, which officials said could be ready to sign in two months, would cut each side's nuclear arsenal to between 1,500 and 1,675 operationally deployed warheads -- down from 2,200 on the American side and 2,800 in Russia, which has also kept an unknown number in reserve. Both countries would also commit to deeper cuts in the number of operational launch vehicles, whether missiles, submarines or aircraft. The total number would be limited to between 700 and 800 on each side. "There may be finessing and fine-turning, but the issues, from our perspective, are all addressed," a US official said. Chief among these issues was Russian resistance to international inspections of its launch sites and a proposal for both powers to share missile test data.
The US and Russia have agreed in principle on a deal to replace the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (Start) that expired in December after 15 years as the centerpiece of nuclear arms control, the Wall Street Journal reports today.
The deal, which officials said could be ready to sign in two months, would cut each side's nuclear arsenal to between 1,500 and 1,675 operationally deployed warheads -- down from 2,200 on the American side and 2,800 in Russia, which has also kept an unknown number in reserve.
Both countries would also commit to deeper cuts in the number of operational launch vehicles, whether missiles, submarines or aircraft. The total number would be limited to between 700 and 800 on each side. "There may be finessing and fine-turning, but the issues, from our perspective, are all addressed," a US official said. Chief among these issues was Russian resistance to international inspections of its launch sites and a proposal for both powers to share missile test data.
