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United States – Russia mutual detargeting

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Between 12 and 15 January 1994, President Bill Clinton of the United States and President Boris Yeltsin of the Russian Federation negotiated the Kremlin accords.[1] These accords were an agreement between their respective countries not to target strategic nuclear missiles at each other.

The text of the agreement,[2] which is thirteen paragraphs long, includes a single paragraph on the subject of detargeting. It specifies 30 May 1994 as the deadline for detargeting, and states that "for the first time in nearly half a century – virtually since the dawn of the nuclear age – Russia and United States will not operate nuclear forces, day-to-day, in a manner that presumes they are adversaries."

Detargeted missiles are reprogrammed to either have no target or, in the case of missiles that require a constant target (such as the Minuteman III), are set to open-ocean targets.[3]

In 1997, during a debate over an amendment that would require the president to certify that Russia had detargeted its missiles, Representative Curt Weldon (R-PA) introduced into the Congressional Record a transcript of a 60 Minutes interview with Russian generals which stated that Russian intercontinental ballistic missiles could be retargeted to point to US targets within a matter of minutes. Weldon also pointed out that there is no way to verify that Russia has detargeted its missiles.[4]

References

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  1. ^ "In Disarmament Breakthroughs, Clinton, Yeltsin Sign Nuclear Accords". AP NEWS. Retrieved 2020-05-20.
  2. ^ "Text of Moscow Declaration by President Clinton and Russian President Yeltsin, Moscow, Russia, January 14, 1994". Federation of American Scientists. 1998. Retrieved September 21, 2007.
  3. ^ "DEFENSE DEPARTMENT REPORT, TUESDAY, MAY 31". Federation of American Scientists. 1998. Retrieved September 21, 2007.
  4. ^ "DETARGETING OF RUSSIAN INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC MISSILES". Federation of American Scientists. 1998. Retrieved September 21, 2007.