ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book introduces to the enormous range of repercussions caused by a disarmament agreement. It examines the concept of verification, analyses the meaning of the term, presenting various definitions of what verification is and attempting to systematize the concept. The book establishes the functions of, and the extent of the need for verification, seen from different angles, especially that of a state’s security. It describes verification on its own can do little to preserve the treaty regime. The book gives a brief analysis of the concept of national interests in general, and the concept of national security in particular. It considers a specific case of strategic military security, in which security, defined as stable strategic deterrence between two states. The book also analysis the role of verification in preserving security in such circumstances is analysed, thereby answering the main problem.
