U.S. and Russian officials see no quick and easy extension to New START.
Treaty-prohibited missiles to be tested after INF Treaty termination.
New delivery vehicles and warheads are featured in fiscal year 2020 budget request.
U.S. presses forward on funding autonomous weapons while not mentioning ethics of use.
Germany Seeks Control for New Weapons
In the absence of active U.S.-Russian efforts to resolve disagreements over the INF Treaty, other nations may be
able to lead the way toward preventing a new arms race.
The INF Treaty crisis threatens far more than the INF Treaty.
The estimated cost of sustaining and modernizing U.S. nuclear weapons over the next 10 years has
increased 23 percent.
Every U.S. president since John Kennedy has successfully concluded at least one agreement with Russia or the Soviet Union to reduce nuclear dangers. These agreements have helped to slash nuclear stockpiles, manage nuclear competition, and provide greater stability, thereby reducing the risk of nuclear catastrophe between the world’s two largest nuclear actors.
The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB), in charge of overseeing the safety and security of U.S. nuclear weapons complex sites, is in the middle of a battle with the Department of Energy and Congress over its scope and size and its role as an independent oversight authority.