Arms Control

On Topic

From the end of World War II to the present, the challenge of arms control has been a central feature in the relationship between the United States and Russia—the former Soviet Union—as well as with emerging world powers. A series of treaties has defined permitted levels of nuclear and other strategic weapons and regularly gives occasion to examine the status of weapons arsenals around the world. Brookings experts apply their direct experience in arms control negotiations to their recommendations for maintaining the arms control regime.

A mobile launcher with a Topol-M missile travels along the Red Square during a military parade in Moscow (REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin).

Past Event

The U.S.-Russia Relationship: Transcending Mutual Deterrence

September 30, 2013

On September 30, the Arms Control Initiative at Brookings, in conjunction with Harvard’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, held a panel discussion to explore the possibilities for the United States and Russia to move past the current mutual deterrence strategy of nuclear weapons.

Recent Activity

Refine by: Nuclear Weapons | Nonproliferation | Russia | Weapons of Mass Destruction

Interview

Impact of U.S.-Russia Relations on the G20, Syria and Arms Control

August 29, 2013, Steven Pifer, Clifford G. Gaddy and Angela Stent
In the News

[Obama] clearly would like to do something more on arms control, so one question is, are the Russians prepared to respond to the proposals that he made in Berlin in June for reducing the new START limits by a third?
July 21, 2013, Steven Pifer, AFP
Interview | WKAR

The Future of the U.S. Nuclear Arsenal

March 20, 2013, Steven Pifer
In the News

These [ground-based missile] interceptors in Alaska and California are believed to have some capability against a rudimentary intercontinental ballistic missile warhead of the kind that you would expect North Korea to have initially. But how good they would actually be, we don’t know. But there is some capability to protect America already deployed.
February 14, 2013, Steven Pifer, Voice of America
Expert Q & A | Steven Pifer

Beyond the State of the Union, A Plan for Nuclear Arms Control

February 13, 2013, Steven Pifer
Interview | United States Institute of Peace

Prospects for Progress at New Talks with Iran

February 4, 2013, Bruce Riedel
In the News

I assume the president [Obama] has a more ambitious arms control agenda for his second term.…If he wants another treaty as part of his legacy, it has to be done in time for a ratification debate in 2015, not in the 2016 election year.
December 3, 2012, Steven Pifer, Los Angeles Times
Interview | Radio Free Europe

Are The Russians Ready To Reengage?

November 19, 2012, Steven Pifer
In the News

In the next several years the U.S. has to make some very expensive decisions about how to modernize the legs of the U.S. strategic triad [bombers, submarine and land-based missiles]. For example, replacing the Trident submarine will cost, according to the Navy, $6 to $7 billion a piece.
October 22, 2012, Steven Pifer, NBC News
Interview | Al Jazeera English

Disarming the World

October 18, 2012, Steven Pifer