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Russian Nuclear Weapons: Past, Present, and Future

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67. See Nikolai Sokov, “The <strong>Russian</strong> <strong>Nuclear</strong> Arms Control<br />

Agenda After SORT,” Arms Control Today, April 2003, available<br />

from www.armscontrol.org/act/2003_04/sokov_apr03.asp.<br />

68. While keeping a competitive posture on strategic weapons,<br />

Russia is prepared to play a partnership role with the United<br />

States in curbing WMD proliferation <strong>and</strong> other areas where both<br />

nations face similar challenges <strong>and</strong> threats. For example, in July<br />

2006, Presidents of both countries launched the joint Global Initiative<br />

to Combat <strong>Nuclear</strong> Terrorism aimed “to prevent the acquisition,<br />

transport, or use by terrorists of nuclear materials <strong>and</strong><br />

radioactive substances or improvised explosive devices using<br />

such materials, as well as hostile actions against nuclear facilities.”<br />

“Joint Statement by U.S. President George Bush <strong>and</strong> <strong>Russian</strong><br />

Federation President Vladimir Putin announcing the Global<br />

Initiative to Combat <strong>Nuclear</strong> Terrorism,” St. Petersburg, Russia,<br />

July 15, 2006, President of Russia Official Web Portal, available from<br />

www.kremlin.ru/eng/text/docs/2006/07/108727.shtml.<br />

69. Yevgenii Kozhokhin, “U.S.-<strong>Russian</strong> Relations: Facts<br />

<strong>and</strong> Mutual Expectations,” IAIR Publication, December 2002, in<br />

<strong>Russian</strong>, available from www.ipmi.ru/html_en/publication_en/m_<br />

en/06_%20_1_december_2002_en.htm.<br />

70. According to Nikolai Sokov: “Coupled with the end of<br />

the ABM Treaty <strong>and</strong> START 2, SORT marks the end of traditional<br />

arms control. Further reductions are unlikely in the near future<br />

because, after SORT is implemented, the United States <strong>and</strong> Russia<br />

will have reached what they feel is the optimal (or close to the<br />

optimal) level of strategic arsenals that they need: 2,200 deployed<br />

warheads for the United States <strong>and</strong> 1,500 for Russia. One possible<br />

additional step is codification of the ongoing reduction of <strong>Russian</strong><br />

nonstrategic nuclear weapons, but its chances are remote. More<br />

importantly, managing first-strike capability, which was the key<br />

motive of traditional arms control, is no longer urgent following<br />

the end of the Cold War.” See Nikolai Sokov, “The <strong>Russian</strong><br />

<strong>Nuclear</strong> Arms Control Agenda After SORT,” Arms Control Today,<br />

April, 2003.<br />

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