START Treaty Is Signed
The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), signed on July 31, 1991, marked a significant moment in international relations, particularly in the context of nuclear disarmament between the United States and the Soviet Union. This treaty emerged during a critical period as the Cold War was drawing to a close and aimed to reduce the nuclear arsenals of both superpowers by nearly one-third. The agreement was a result of diplomatic efforts led by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who sought to foster military and political reconciliation with the United States amidst the declining power of the Soviet state.
START also introduced mechanisms for mutual verification and inspection, ensuring compliance with the treaty's terms. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the treaty was upheld by successor states, including the Russian Federation and several newly independent nations that had inherited parts of the Soviet nuclear stockpile. By securing the treaty prior to the Soviet Union's collapse, the United States avoided the complexities of negotiating with multiple new governments. The START Treaty is often viewed as a crucial step towards nuclear arms control and stability in a post-Cold War world.
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START Treaty Is Signed
START Treaty Is Signed
On July 31, 1991, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) was signed by the leaders of the United States and what was then the Soviet Union. It was an important treaty during the waning months of the Soviet state because it helped to reduce the stockpiles of nuclear weapons held by both sides.
As discussed in other articles throughout this book, by the late 1980s the Soviet Union was losing the Cold War with the United States that had lasted since the late 1940s. There had been nuclear weapons agreements since the 1970s, when the first Strategic Arms Limitations Treaty (SALT) accords between the two superpowers began to limit the development of these devices, but it was not until the 1980s that the possibility of actual nuclear arms reduction emerged. This came about as Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev granted a variety of concessions to the United States in an effort to achieve military, political, and economic conciliation between the two superpowers.
The START agreement, executed between Gorbachev and U.S. president George H. W. Bush on July 31, 1991, provided for a reduction of nearly one-third in their respective nuclear stockpiles. It also provided for mutual verification and inspection methods. This agreement was later endorsed and adhered to by those nations which succeeded the Soviet Union after its collapse in 1991— namely the Russian Federation and the newly independent nations of Belarus (formerly Byelorussia), Kazakhstan, and the Ukraine—which inherited portions of its nuclear arsenal. By entering into START before the collapse of the Soviet Union, however, the United States was able to avoid having to negotiate its key provisions with the leaders and governments of four different nations.