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Issue Brief
Michael Jasinski, Research Associate
CNS NIS Nonproliferation Program
Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS)
Monterey Institute of International Studies
August 2001 (updated August 2002)
Issue
Introduction Issue
Brief Relevant
Resources
Issue Introduction
As the political and economic situation in the Soviet Union deteriorated in the late 1980s, fears arose that the Soviet government might not be able to adequately safeguard its weapons of mass destruction (WMD) arsenals, nor the associated materials and know-how. These fears were exacerbated by the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, and gave rise to a number of U.S. government foreign assistance programs whose goal is ensuring the safety and security of WMD assets in the Newly Independent States (NIS). These programs, which have received approximately $4 billion over the last decade from the U.S. government, have been administered by the departments of Energy, Defense, State, and Commerce, and have made great strides toward accomplishing their goals. However, some programs have failed to bring expected results, and the concept of providing nonproliferation assistance to the NIS countries has recently met with some resistance. Early 2001 saw an intensification of the ongoing debate on the utility and direction of these programs. In spite of an early attempt by the Bush administration to reduce nonproliferation assistance program funding, the U.S. Congress restored most of the cuts, and following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, approved additional funding.
This
material is produced independently for NTI by the James
Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the
Monterey Institute of International Studies and does not
necessarily reflect the opinions of and has not been
independently verified by NTI or its directors,
officers, employees, agents. Copyright © 2007 by MIIS.
