ABSTRACT
A strong consensus exists today among those who support bilateral negotiations to limit nuclear arms. This consensus centers around the view that the lack of progress in the negotiating arena is a significant problem because it does not serve US security interests. Conflict among nations is recognized as an inevitable part of the contemporary international political systems among those who support the management and containment approach to arms limitation. One view reflects the general approach taken to offensive nuclear arms control and extrapolates it as an appropriate approach for the future. The reversalists have a rather different perspective on the importance of equality in nuclear capability. Neither of the fundamental approaches to nuclear arms control is new. The key source of competition and rivalry between the superpowers is political. Nuclear armaments are regarded as both an expression and a tool of this competition.
