Word: abm
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...Russians refusing to renegotiate the ABM treaty...
...start work next spring on an advanced radar site on the Alaskan island of Shemya, where fearsome temperatures make construction work possible only during the summer months. But as soon as first concrete is poured on the site, Washington will be in violation of the 1972 ABM treaty severely limiting the extent of missile defense deployed by Washington and Moscow. Clinton wants the Russians to renegotiate the treaty to allow the system's deployment, but the answer thus far has been a stony "nyet...
...What Washington calls 'renegotiating,' Moscow calls 'destroying' a treaty they see as the cornerstone of arms control," says Meier. The logic of the ABM was that neither side would create a shield that would allow it to fire nuclear missiles at the other without fear of devastating retaliation. Although Clinton hopes to persuade them that the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction among "rogue states" necessitates a new approach, the Russians see even the limited plan he has proposed as the thin end of a wedge that could ultimately neutralize their own nuclear deterrent...
...What can the U.S. do if the Russians refuse to renegotiate the ABM treaty...
...this point Putin wants no part of any tinkering with the ABM treaty, fearing that it would open the door to a larger U.S. shield than Clinton says he wants to deploy, which Moscow cannot afford to match and which would threaten its nuclear deterrence. He has warned Clinton that Russia will abandon all arms-control treaties if the U.S. builds a national missile defense...