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U.S.-Russia II: Reductions Must be Permanent, Russia Says Russia today said any nuclear warhead reductions must be “irreversible,” in response to the recently released U.S. Nuclear Posture Review that said some warheads might only be stored (see related GSN story, today). “We believe Russian-American agreements on further cuts in nuclear arsenals must first be radical — down to 1,500 to 2,200 warheads — secondly verifiable and thirdly irreversible,” said Russian foreign ministry spokesman Aleksandr Yakovenko. “This means strategic nuclear weapons must be cut not only ‘on paper,’” he said. A senior source in the Russian general staff criticized U.S. plans to remove warheads from Peacekeeper ICBMs. “Such a contribution by Washington cannot be acceptable — offering 50 Peacekeeper ICBMs and 200 to 300 warheads whose working life has already expired,” the source said. “It is ridiculous.” The United States was not attempting to “mislead anybody,” said U.S. Assistant Defense Secretary J.D. Crouch. He added that it was “a prudent thing to have, in a very uncertain period, some responsive capability” (Reuters/ABC News.com, Jan. 10). “The relevance of [international agreements on nonproliferation and dismantlement], unfortunately, is growing in the light of the erroneous decision by the United States to withdraw from the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (see GSN, Dec. 13, 2001),” Yakovenko said (Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty , Jan. 10).
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