ABSTRACT

The end of the Cold War has freed rivals in a number of regions to have nuclear arms races. It has also created conditions that should facilitate international cooperation to forestall such arms races. Developments in Soviet-U.S. nuclear arms control that increase or decrease the legitimacy of their non-proliferation efforts could well influence the outcome of some of these regional situations. The elimination of tactical nuclear weapons deployed throughout Soviet and US general-purpose forces would eliminate the associated deterrent effect against low-level conflicts between those forces. Deep cuts in Soviet and US nuclear forces would also strengthen the legitimacy of the nonproliferation regime. A Comprehensive Test Ban is an agreement that would be useful both as a Soviet-U.S. nuclear arms-control measure and to help strengthen the legitimacy of the nonproliferation regime. As an arms-control measure, it would cut off further development of "third-generation directed-energy nuclear weapons.