ABSTRACT

This chapter discusses the stability of a post-agreement environment—or even whether an agreement is reached—will depend in large measure on how North Atlantic Treaty Organization manages the political issues. Understanding the dimensions of the political environment, therefore, is important both in how one approaches negotiations and in how one assesses the outcome. Many indicators are competing; some portend revolutionary changes to the political environment, while others work to resist such change. Successful management of the political environment should also facilitate resolution of the many technical issues that will plague regulation of a complex military relationship. Many pointed to the political utility of an ongoing arms control process, independent of its substantive focus, in which East and West might build mutual confidence through the habit of a continuous dialogue on their respective military postures. Given the legacy of a protracted and moribund negotiating effort, the urgency that has recently surrounded conventional arms control seems remarkable.