ABSTRACT
The Treaty Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Limitation of Anti-Ballistic Missile Systems (ABM Treaty) and the companion Interim Agreement on Certain Measures With Respect to the Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (Interim Agreement) were landmarks in terms of verification when agreed to by the United States and the Soviet Union in 1972. Verification raises the fundamental issue, whether the sources are national technical means of verification (NTM) or on-site inspection (OSI), what constitutes “effective” verification for purposes of US policy. The INF Treaty of 1987 established a stringent new type of verification regime between the United States and the Soviet Union, including OSI as part of a series of cooperative measures. Under the Constitution of the United States, there are certain rights that cannot be modified by treaty or statute, including those in the Fourth Amendment which prohibits “unreasonable searches and seizures” without a prior court-ordered search warrant.
