United States Overview

United States Overview

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This is page is part of the United States Country Profile.

The United States possesses a substantial nuclear weapons arsenal and associated delivery systems and is one of the five nuclear weapon states recognized by the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). The United States is a party to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC) as well as the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), and does not have offensive biological and chemical programs.

Nuclear

The United States used nuclear weapons on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945, making it the only country to ever use nuclear weapons during a conflict. At its 1967 peak, the U.S. arsenal contained 31,255 nuclear warheads. 1 As of the latest U.S. government disclosures (September 2017), the arsenal consisted of 3,822 nuclear warheads, with thousands more retired and awaiting dismantlement. 2 In April 2019, The United States Department of Defense declined to publish nuclear stockpile numbers, reversing a policy of nuclear stockpile transparency begun in 2010 under the Obama administration. 3

The United States possesses a land-sea-air “nuclear triad” of delivery systems, comprising intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs), and strategic bombers. The United States also deploys approximately 150-200 nuclear gravity bombs in five NATO countries: Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Turkey, as part of its commitment to extended deterrence. 4

In addition to the NPT, the United States is a party to several treaties related to the reduction and control of nuclear weapons. The U.S.-Russian New START Treaty, which entered into force on 7 February 2011, reduced both countries’ strategic nuclear arsenals to 1,550 deployed strategic warheads and 700 deployed strategic delivery vehicles. 5 The United States is also a member of export control organizations aimed at limiting the proliferation of sensitive nuclear technologies, including the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and the Zangger Committee (ZAC).

After conducting a total of 1,054 nuclear tests since 1945, the United States has maintained a unilateral moratorium on nuclear tests since 1992. 6 The United States signed the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) in 1996 but has not ratified the treaty. 7 The United States opposes the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), led a multi-nation boycott of the treaty’s negotiation in 2017, and does not intend to sign, ratify, or become party to it. 8

The United States is currently modernizing all three legs of its nuclear triad. The Congressional Budget Office estimated in 2017 that these efforts could cost 1.2 trillion dollars over a 30-year period. 9 Independent analysts have since suggested that the price is likely to surpass 1.5 trillion dollars over the next 30 years. 10 In 2021 alone, the United States budgeted $15.6 billion to warhead modification, update and life extension projects and a further $28.9 billion to triad delivery system modernization. 11 Additionally, the Trump administration’s 2018 Nuclear Posture Review called for the development of new types of nuclear weapons, including a new low-yield SLBM nuclear warhead, the W76-2, which began production in 2019. 12 The Department of Defense announced that the Navy had fielded the W76-2 warhead in February 2020. 13 In line with the 2018 Nuclear Posture review, the FY 2021 National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Congressional Budget Request and the Stockpile Stewardship Management Plan indicated six nuclear warhead programs: a future strategic land-based warhead, a future sea-based warhead, replacement air-delivered and sea-launched warheads, and the W93 program. 14 Announced in February 2020, the W93 program is slated for fielding on US ballistic missile submarines by 2040 and will be the first new warhead design added to the US arsenal since the W88.

Under President Trump, the United States showed ambivalence and occasional hostility toward arms control diplomacy, as seen with the withdrawal from the U.S.-Russia Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) in 2019, and from the Open Skies Treaty in November 2020. 15 The first 100 days of the Biden administration have seen some re-emerging interest in arms control. In February 2021, the Biden administration renewed the New START Treaty and made efforts to re-engage with Iran on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. 16 Administration officials have further made comments suggesting an interest in pursuing arms control and risk reduction measures with China. 17

Biological

Beginning in 1943, the United States weaponized a variety of pathogens and toxins for use against humans and plants, including Bacillus anthracis (anthrax), Francisella tularensis (tularemia), Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEE), Clostridium botulinum (Botulinum Toxin), and staphylococcus aureus (staphylococcal enterotoxin B or SEB). 18 President Nixon renounced biological weapons on 25 November 1969, and the U.S. signed the Biological and Toxins Weapons Convention (BTWC) on 10 April 1972. 19 Between May 1971 and February 1973, the United States destroyed its entire BW stockpile. 20

The United States has sought to cement norms against the proliferation of biological weapons through multilateral efforts such as the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) and export control regimes such as the Australia Group (AG). In September 2018, the Trump administration released the 2018 National Biodefense Strategy, which seeks to manage the risk of naturally occurring, accidental, or deliberate biological threats. 21

Missile

The United States produces and deploys highly sophisticated liquid- and solid-fueled ballistic missiles and cruise missiles. According to a 2018 estimate, the United States deploys 400 LGM-30G Minuteman III nuclear-tipped intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) at bases in Montana, North Dakota, and Wyoming. The Navy deploys 280 UGM-133A Trident II D-5 submarine launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) on 14 Ohio-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (SSBN). The Air Force deploys 20 B-2A bombers that can carry up to 16 nuclear bombs and 46 B-52H Stratofortress bombers that can each carry up to 20 AGM-86B nuclear tipped air-launched cruise missiles (ALCM) each. 22

Following the signing of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF) in 1987, the United States eliminated its entire stockpile of intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBM) and medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBM). 23 The Trump administration officially withdrew the United States from the INF on 2 August 2019. The United States has since conducted tests of intermediate-range ballistic missiles previously banned by the INF. 24

The United States has historically devoted considerable resources to missile defense. The most recent Missile Defense Review, released in January 2019, proposed new space-based interceptors and an expanded scope for the U.S. missile defense mission. 25

The United States participates in missile technology nonproliferation through its membership in the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and the Hague Code of Conduct Against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCOC), which is designed to supplement and bolster the MTCR.

Chemical

During WWI, the United States manufactured, stockpiled, and used chemical weapons (CW), primarily mustard agent and phosgene gas, but has not used CW since. 26 In 1969, President Nixon signed an executive order halting further production of unitary chemical weapons, and the United States ratified the Geneva Protocol in 1975. 27 On 1 June 1990, Presidents Bush and Gorbachev signed the Bilateral Destruction Agreement (BDA), halting all production of new U.S. and Soviet CW. 28

The United States ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) in 1997, obligating the country to destroy all CW stockpiles by 2007. 29 The United States has received multiple extensions, and is currently on track to complete destruction of chemical stockpiles by September 2023. 30 The United States promotes CW nonproliferation through the Australia Group (AG), an export control mechanism.

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Glossary

Nuclear weapon
Nuclear weapon: A device that releases nuclear energy in an explosive manner as the result of nuclear chain reactions involving fission, or fission and fusion, of atomic nuclei. Such weapons are also sometimes referred to as atomic bombs (a fission-based weapon); or boosted fission weapons (a fission-based weapon deriving a slightly higher yield from a small fusion reaction); or hydrogen bombs/thermonuclear weapons (a weapon deriving a significant portion of its energy from fusion reactions).
Nuclear-weapon states (NWS)
NWS: As defined by Article IX, paragraph 3 of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), the five states that detonated a nuclear device prior to 1 January 1967 (China, France, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, and the United States). Coincidentally, these five states are also permanent members of the UN Security Council. States that acquired and/or tested nuclear weapons subsequently are not internationally recognized as nuclear-weapon states.
Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT)
The NPT: Signed in 1968, the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) is the most widely adhered-to international security agreement. The “three pillars” of the NPT are nuclear disarmament, nonproliferation, and peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Article VI of the NPT commits states possessing nuclear weapons to negotiate in good faith toward halting the arms race and the complete elimination of nuclear weapons. The Treaty stipulates that non-nuclear-weapon states will not seek to acquire nuclear weapons, and will accept International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards on their nuclear activities, while nuclear weapon states commit not to transfer nuclear weapons to other states. All states have a right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and should assist one another in its development. The NPT provides for conferences of member states to review treaty implementation at five-year intervals. Initially of a 25-year duration, the NPT was extended indefinitely in 1995. For additional information, see the NPT.
Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC)
The BTWC: The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction (BTWC) prohibits the development, production, or stockpiling of bacteriological and toxin weapons. Countries must destroy or divert to peaceful purposes all agents, toxins, weapons, equipment, and means of delivery within nine months after the entry into force of the convention. The BTWC was opened for signature on April 10, 1972, and entered into force on March 26, 1975. In 1994, the BTWC member states created the Ad Hoc Group to negotiate a legally binding BTWC Protocol that would help deter violations of the BTWC. The draft protocol outlines a monitoring regime that would require declarations of dual-use activities and facilities, routine visits to declared facilities, and short-notice challenge investigations. For additional information, see the BTWC.
Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)
The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) requires each state party to declare and destroy all the chemical weapons (CW) and CW production facilities it possesses, or that are located in any place under its jurisdiction or control, as well as any CW it abandoned on the territory of another state. The CWC was opened for signature on 13 January 1993, and entered into force on 29 April 1997. For additional information, see the CWC.
Biological weapon (BW)
Biological weapons use microorganisms and natural toxins to produce disease in humans, animals, or plants.  Biological weapons can be derived from: bacteria (anthrax, plague, tularemia); viruses (smallpox, viral hemorrhagic fevers); rickettsia (Q fever and epidemic typhus); biological toxins (botulinum toxin, staphylococcus enterotoxin B); and fungi (San Joaquin Valley fever, mycotoxins). These agents can be deployed as biological weapons when paired with a delivery system, such as a missile or aerosol device.
Chemical Weapon (CW)
The CW: The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons defines a chemical weapon as any of the following: 1) a toxic chemical or its precursors; 2) a munition specifically designed to deliver a toxic chemical; or 3) any equipment specifically designed for use with toxic chemicals or munitions. Toxic chemical agents are gaseous, liquid, or solid chemical substances that use their toxic properties to cause death or severe harm to humans, animals, and/or plants. Chemical weapons include blister, nerve, choking, and blood agents, as well as non-lethal incapacitating agents and riot-control agents. Historically, chemical weapons have been the most widely used and widely proliferated weapon of mass destruction.
Dismantlement
Dismantlement: Taking apart a weapon, facility, or other item so that it is no longer functional.
Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)
Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM): A ballistic missile with a range greater than 5,500 km. See entry for ballistic missile.
SSBN
Ship, Submersible, Ballistic, Nuclear: A hull classification for a submarine capable of launching a ballistic missile. The "N", or nuclear, refers to the ship's propulsion system. SSBN's are generally reserved for strategic vessels, as most submarine launched ballistic missiles carry nuclear payloads. A non-strategic vessel carries the designation SSN, or attack submarine.
Strategic Bomber
Strategic Bomber: A long-range aircraft designed to drop large amounts of explosive power—either conventional or nuclear—on enemy territory.
Deployment
The positioning of military forces – conventional and/or nuclear – in conjunction with military planning.
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization is a military alliance that was formed in 1949 to help deter the Soviet Union from attacking Europe. The Alliance is based on the North Atlantic Treaty, which was signed in Washington on 4 April 1949. The treaty originally created an alliance of 10 European and two North American independent states, but today NATO has 28 members who have committed to maintaining and developing their defense capabilities, to consulting on issues of mutual security concern, and to the principle of collective self-defense. NATO is also engaged in out-of-area security operations, most notably in Afghanistan, where Alliance forces operate alongside other non-NATO countries as part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). For additional information, see NATO.
Deterrence
The actions of a state or group of states to dissuade a potential adversary from initiating an attack or conflict through the credible threat of retaliation. To be effective, a deterrence strategy should demonstrate to an adversary that the costs of an attack would outweigh any potential gains. See entries for Extended deterrence and nuclear deterrence.
New START
New START: A treaty between the United States and Russia on further limitations and reductions of strategic offensive weapons, signed on 8 April 2010, which entered into force on 5 February 2011. Under the New START provisions, the two sides have to reduce the number of deployed strategic warheads and the number of deployed strategic delivery vehicles within seven years of the treaty’s entry into force. The treaty’s verification measures are based on the earlier verification system created under START I. New START supersedes the Moscow Treaty, and its duration is 10 years, with an option of extension for up to five years. See entry for Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and Treaty of Moscow. For additional information, see New START.
Entry into force
The moment at which all provisions of a treaty are legally binding on its parties. Every treaty specifies preconditions for its entry into force. For example, the NPT specified that it would enter into force after the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union (the Depository governments) and 40 other countries ratified the treaty, an event that occurred on March 5, 1970. See entries for Signature, Ratification.
Export control
National laws or international arrangements established to restrict the sale of certain goods to certain countries, or to ensure that safeguards or end-use guarantees are applied to the export and sale of sensitive and dual-use technologies and materials. See entry for Dual-use
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)
The NSG was established in 1975, and its members commit themselves to exporting sensitive nuclear technologies only to countries that adhere to strict non-proliferation standards. For additional information, see the NSG.
Zangger Committee (ZC)
A group of 35 nuclear exporting states established in 1971 under the chairmanship of Claude Zangger of Switzerland. The purpose of the committee is to maintain a "trigger list" of: (1) source or special fissionable materials, and (2) equipment or materials especially designed or prepared for the processing, use, or production of special fissionable materials. Additionally, the committee has identified certain dual-use technologies as requiring safeguarding when they are supplied to non-nuclear weapon states. These include explosives, centrifuge components, and special materials. The Zangger Committee is an informal arrangement, and its decisions are not legally binding upon its members. For more information see the Zangger Committee. 
Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT)
The CTBT: Opened for signature in 1996 at the UN General Assembly, the CTBT prohibits all nuclear testing if it enters into force. The treaty establishes the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organization (CTBTO) to ensure the implementation of its provisions and verify compliance through a global monitoring system upon entry into force. Pending the treaty’s entry into force, the Preparatory Commission of the CTBTO is charged with establishing the International Monitoring System (IMS) and promoting treaty ratifications. CTBT entry into force is contingent on ratification by 44 Annex II states. For additional information, see the CTBT.
Ratification
Ratification: The implementation of the formal process established by a country to legally bind its government to a treaty, such as approval by a parliament. In the United States, treaty ratification requires approval by the president after he or she has received the advice and consent of two-thirds of the Senate. Following ratification, a country submits the requisite legal instrument to the treaty’s depository governments Procedures to ratify a treaty follow its signature.

See entries for Entry into force and Signature.
Nuclear Posture Review
Under a mandate from the U.S. Congress, the Department of Defense regularly conducts a comprehensive Nuclear Posture Review to set forth the direction of U.S. nuclear weapons policies. To date, the United States has completed four Nuclear Posture Reviews (in 1994, 2001, 2010, and 2018).
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty
A treaty between the United States and the former Soviet Union, signed on 8 December 1987, which entered into force on 1 June 1988. It aimed to eliminate and ban all ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with a range of between 300 and 3,400 miles (500 to 5,500 kilometers). The treaty required the United States and the Soviet Union to conduct inspections at each other's sites during the elimination of treaty-limited items (TLI). By May 1991, all intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles, launchers, related support equipment, and support structures were eliminated. For additional information, see the INF Treaty.
Anthrax
The common name of the bacterium Bacillus anthracis, as well as the name of the disease it produces.  A predominantly animal disease, anthrax can also infect humans and cause death within days.  B. anthracis bacteria can form hardy spores, making them relatively easy to disseminate.  Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the USSR/Russia have all investigated anthrax as a biological weapon, as did the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo.  Anthrax-laced letters were also used to attack the U.S. Senate and numerous news agencies in September 2001.  There is no vaccine available to the general public, and treatment requires aggressive administration of antibiotics.
Tularemia
Tularemia is a disease caused by Francisella tularensis, a bacterium that is native to rabbits and aquatic mammals, but is also one of the most infectious pathogens to humans. Tularemia can survive in harsh conditions, and just one organism can cause human infection. Tularemia aerosols can incapacitate a patient within one or two days. Tularemia infection causes fever and skin lesions, and can eventually develop into pneumonia. The Soviet Union and Japan investigated F. tularensis for bioweapons purposes during World War II, as did the United States during the 1950s and 1960s.
Botulinum Toxin
Botulism is caused by exposure to botulinum toxin (a neurotoxin).  Most often caused by eating contaminated foods, botulinum poisoning prevents the human nervous system from transmitting signals, resulting in paralysis, and eventually death by suffocation.  Botulinum toxin is the most toxic known substance. 15,000 times more toxic than VX nerve gas, mere nanograms of botulinum toxin will kill an adult human.  A significant bioweapons concern, botulinum toxin has been investigated as a weapon by Japan, the Soviet Union, the United States, Iraq and unsuccessfully by the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo. 
Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BTWC)
The BTWC: The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production and Stockpiling of Bacteriological (Biological) and Toxin Weapons and on Their Destruction (BTWC) prohibits the development, production, or stockpiling of bacteriological and toxin weapons. Countries must destroy or divert to peaceful purposes all agents, toxins, weapons, equipment, and means of delivery within nine months after the entry into force of the convention. The BTWC was opened for signature on April 10, 1972, and entered into force on March 26, 1975. In 1994, the BTWC member states created the Ad Hoc Group to negotiate a legally binding BTWC Protocol that would help deter violations of the BTWC. The draft protocol outlines a monitoring regime that would require declarations of dual-use activities and facilities, routine visits to declared facilities, and short-notice challenge investigations. For additional information, see the BTWC.
Multilateral
Multilateral: Negotiations, agreements or treaties that are concluded among three or more parties, countries, etc.
Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI)
The PSI: Announced by U.S. President George W. Bush in May 2003, PSI is a U.S.- led effort to prevent the proliferation of WMD, their delivery systems, and related materials through the use of information sharing and coordination of diplomatic and military efforts. Members of the initiative share a set of 13 common principles, which guide PSI efforts. For more information, see the PSI.
Export control
National laws or international arrangements established to restrict the sale of certain goods to certain countries, or to ensure that safeguards or end-use guarantees are applied to the export and sale of sensitive and dual-use technologies and materials. See entry for Dual-use
Australia Group (AG)
Australia Group (AG): Established in 1985 to limit the spread of chemical and biological weapons (CBW) through export controls on chemical precursors, equipment, agents, and organisms. For additional information, see the Australia Group.
Deployment
The positioning of military forces – conventional and/or nuclear – in conjunction with military planning.
Ballistic missile
A delivery vehicle powered by a liquid or solid fueled rocket that primarily travels in a ballistic (free-fall) trajectory.  The flight of a ballistic missile includes three phases: 1) boost phase, where the rocket generates thrust to launch the missile into flight; 2) midcourse phase, where the missile coasts in an arc under the influence of gravity; and 3) terminal phase, in which the missile descends towards its target.  Ballistic missiles can be characterized by three key parameters - range, payload, and Circular Error Probable (CEP), or targeting precision.  Ballistic missiles are primarily intended for use against ground targets.
Cruise missile
An unmanned self-propelled guided vehicle that sustains flight through aerodynamic lift for most of its flight path. There are subsonic and supersonic cruise missiles currently deployed in conventional and nuclear arsenals, while conventional hypersonic cruise missiles are currently in development. These can be launched from the air, submarines, or the ground. Although they carry smaller payloads, travel at slower speeds, and cover lesser ranges than ballistic missiles, cruise missiles can be programmed to travel along customized flight paths and to evade missile defense systems.
Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)
Intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM): A ballistic missile with a range greater than 5,500 km. See entry for ballistic missile.
Submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM)
SLBM: A ballistic missile that is carried on and launched from a submarine.
SSBN
Ship, Submersible, Ballistic, Nuclear: A hull classification for a submarine capable of launching a ballistic missile. The "N", or nuclear, refers to the ship's propulsion system. SSBN's are generally reserved for strategic vessels, as most submarine launched ballistic missiles carry nuclear payloads. A non-strategic vessel carries the designation SSN, or attack submarine.
Air-Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM)
A missile designed to be launched from an aircraft and jet-engine powered throughout its flight. As with all cruise missiles, its range is a function of payload, propulsion, and fuel volume, and can thus vary greatly. Under the START I Treaty, the term "long-range ALCM" means an air-launched cruise missile with a range in excess of 600 kilometers.
Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty
A treaty between the United States and the former Soviet Union, signed on 8 December 1987, which entered into force on 1 June 1988. It aimed to eliminate and ban all ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with a range of between 300 and 3,400 miles (500 to 5,500 kilometers). The treaty required the United States and the Soviet Union to conduct inspections at each other's sites during the elimination of treaty-limited items (TLI). By May 1991, all intermediate-range and shorter-range missiles, launchers, related support equipment, and support structures were eliminated. For additional information, see the INF Treaty.
Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR)
The MTCR: An informal arrangement established in April 1987 by an association of supplier states concerned about the proliferation of missile equipment and technology relevant to missiles that are capable of carrying a payload over 500 kilograms over a 300-kilometer range. Though originally intended to restrict the proliferation of nuclear-capable missiles, the regime has been expanded to restrict the spread of unmanned aerial vehicles. For additional information, see the MTCR.
HCOC
The Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCOC), formerly known as The International Code of Conduct (ICOC), was adopted in 2002. The HCOC was established to bolster efforts to curb ballistic missile proliferation worldwide and to further delegitimize such proliferation by fostering consensus among states on how they should conduct their trade in missiles and dual-use items.
Mustard (HD)
Mustard is a blister agent, or vesicant. The term mustard gas typically refers to sulfur mustard (HD), despite HD being neither a mustard nor a gas. Sulfur mustard gained notoriety during World War I for causing more casualties than all of the other chemical agents combined. Victims develop painful blisters on their skin, as well as lung and eye irritation leading to potential pulmonary edema and blindness. However, mustard exposure is usually not fatal. A liquid at room temperature, sulfur mustard has been delivered using artillery shells and aerial bombs. HD is closely related to the nitrogen mustards (HN-1, HN-2, HN—3).
Phosgene (CG)
Phosgene (CG): A choking agent, phosgene gas causes damage to the respiratory system leading to fluid build-up in the lungs. Phosgene also causes coughing, throat and eye irritation, tearing, and blurred vision. A gas at room temperature, phosgene can be delivered as a pressurized liquid that quickly converts to gas. Germany and France used phosgene during World War I; the United Kingdom, the United States, and Russia also produced military phosgene. Phosgene caused over 80% of the deaths from chemical gas during World War I.
Ratification
Ratification: The implementation of the formal process established by a country to legally bind its government to a treaty, such as approval by a parliament. In the United States, treaty ratification requires approval by the president after he or she has received the advice and consent of two-thirds of the Senate. Following ratification, a country submits the requisite legal instrument to the treaty’s depository governments Procedures to ratify a treaty follow its signature.

See entries for Entry into force and Signature.
Geneva Protocol
Geneva Protocol: Formally known as the Protocol for the Prohibition of the Use in War of Asphyxiating, Poisonous or Other Gases, and of Bacteriological Methods of Warfare, this protocol prohibits the use in war of asphyxiating, poisonous, or other gases, and bans bacteriological warfare. It was opened for signature on 17 June 1925. For additional information, see the Geneva Protocol.
Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)
The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) requires each state party to declare and destroy all the chemical weapons (CW) and CW production facilities it possesses, or that are located in any place under its jurisdiction or control, as well as any CW it abandoned on the territory of another state. The CWC was opened for signature on 13 January 1993, and entered into force on 29 April 1997. For additional information, see the CWC.
Nonproliferation
Nonproliferation: Measures to prevent the spread of biological, chemical, and/or nuclear weapons and their delivery systems. See entry for Proliferation.
Australia Group (AG)
Australia Group (AG): Established in 1985 to limit the spread of chemical and biological weapons (CBW) through export controls on chemical precursors, equipment, agents, and organisms. For additional information, see the Australia Group.

Sources

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  2. DoD Open Government, “Stockpile Numbers,” U.S. Department of Defense, September 30, 2017, www.open.defense.gov.
  3. Stephen Aftergood, “Pentagon Blocks Declassification of 2018 Nuclear Stockpile,” Federation of American Scientists, 17 April 2019, www.fas.org; Hans Kristensen, “Pentagon Slams Door on Nuclear Weapons Stockpile Transparency,” Federation of American Scientists, 17 April 2019, www.fas.org.
  4. Robert S. Norris and Hans M. Kristensen, “United States Nuclear Forces, 2018,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists 74, No. 2 (March 2018), p. 120-131.
  5. Office of the Press Secretary, “Key Facts about the New START Treaty,” 26 March 2010, www.whitehouse.gov; Peter Baker, “Senate Passes Arms Control Treaty with Russia, 71-26,” New York Times, 22 December 2010, www.nytimes.com; “New START Enters into Force,” Global Security Newswire, 7 February 2011, www.globalsecuritynewswire.org.
  6. U.S. Department of Energy Nevada Operations Office, “United States Nuclear Tests: July 1945 through September 1992,” DOE/NV—209-REV 15, December 2000, www.nv.doe.gov; U.S. Congress, “Energy and Water Development Appropriations Act, 1993,” 102nd Congress H.R. 5373, 2 October 1992, http://thomas.loc.gov.
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  10. Kingston Reif and Shannon Bugos, “Surging U.S. Nuclear Weapons Budget a Growing Danger,” Arms Control Association, 19 March 2020, www.armscontrol.org.
  11. U.S. Department of Defense, “DOD Releases Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Proposal,” U.S. Department of Defense, 10 February 2020, www.defense.gov; U.S. Department of Energy “Department of Energy FY 2021 Congressional Budget Request: National Nuclear Security Administration,” U.S. Department of Energy, February 2020, https://energy.gov.
  12. “Nuclear Posture Review,” United States Department of Defense, February 2018, media.defense.gov; Ankit Panda, “U.S. Begins Production of Low-Yield Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile Warhead,” The Diplomat, 30 January 2019, www.thediplomat.com.
  13. “Statement on the Fielding of the W76-2 Low-Yield Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile Warhead,” U.S. Department of Defense, 4 February 2020, www.defense.gov.
  14. Julian Borger, “Donald Trump Confirms U.S. Withdrawal from INF Nuclear Treaty,” The Guardian, 1 February 2019, www.theguardian.com; Paulina Firozi, “Trump administration exits Open Skies treaty,” Washington Post, 22 November 2020, www.washingtonpost.com.
  15. Amy F. Wolf, “The New START Treaty: Central Limits and Key Provisions,” Congressional Research Service, 3 February 2021, https://crsreports.congress.gov; Matthew Lee, “Biden attempt to resurrect Iran nuke deal off to bumpy start,” Associated Press, 23 February 2021, https://apnews.com.
  16. Stephanie Nebehay, “Biden to pursue arms control, seeks to engage China: US envoy,” 4 February 2021, www.reuters.com.
  17. National Nuclear Security Administration, “Fiscal Year 2021 Stockpile Stewardship and Management Plan-Biennial Plan Summary,” U.S. Department of Energy, December 2020, https://energy.gov; U.S. Department of Energy, “Department of Energy FY 2021 Congressional Budget Request: National Nuclear Security Administration,” U.S. Department of Energy, February 2020, https://energy.gov.
  18. Eric Croddy, Chemical and Biological Warfare: A Comprehensive Survey for the Concerned Citizen (New York: Springer-Verlag, 2002), p. 31.
  19. Jeanne Guillemin, Biological Weapons (New York: Columbia University Press, 2005), p. 125, 127. The United States ratified the BTWC on 10 April 1975.
  20.  Joseph Cirincione, Jon B. Wolfsthal, and Miriam Rajkumar, Deadly Arsenals: Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats, Second ed. (Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2005), pp. 60, 212. This stockpile included over 40,000 liters of anti-personnel biological warfare agents and 5,000 kilograms of anti-agricultural agents.
  21. “National Biodefense Strategy,” The White House, 18 September 2018, whitehouse.gov.
  22. Robert S. Norris and Hans M. Kristensen, “United States Nuclear Forces, 2018,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists 74, No. 2 (March 2018), p. 120-131.
  23. Joseph Cirincione, Jon B. Wolfsthal, and Miriam Rajkumar, Deadly Arsenals: Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats, Second ed. (Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2005), pp. 85-87.
  24. Kingston Reif and Shannon Bugos, “U.S. Tests Second Medium-Range Missile,” Arms Control Today, January/February 2020, www.armscontrol.org.
  25. “Missile Defense Review,” United States Department of Defense, 17 January 2019, media.defense.gov; Thomas Karako, “The 2019 Missile Defense Review: A Good Start,” Center for Strategic and International Studies, 17 January 2019, www.csis.org.
  26. Jonathon B. Tucker, War of Nerves: Chemical Warfare from World War I to Al-Qaeda (New York: Anchor Books, 2007), p. 19.
  27. Joseph Cirincione, Jon B. Wolfsthal, and Miriam Rajkumar, Deadly Arsenals: Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Threats, Second ed. (Washington, DC: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, 2005), p. 213.
  28. Jonathon B. Tucker, War of Nerves: Chemical Warfare from World War I to Al-Qaeda (New York: Anchor Books, 2007), pp. 245-295.
  29. “Status of Participation in the Chemical Weapons Convention as at 21 May 2009,” OPCW Technical Secretariat, S/768/2009, 27 May 2009, www.opcw.org.
  30. OPCW Executive Council, “Draft Report of the OPCW on the Implementation of the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction in 2017,” 10-12 July 2018, www.opcw.org.

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