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[Senate Treaty Document 107-8]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

107th Congress                                              Treaty Doc.
                                  SENATE                     
 2d Session                                                    107-8
_______________________________________________________________________

                                     

 
                           THE MOSCOW TREATY

                               __________

                                MESSAGE

                                  from

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

    THE TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE RUSSIAN 
 FEDERATION ON STRATEGIC OFFENSIVE REDUCTIONS, SIGNED AT MOSCOW ON MAY 
                                24, 2002

 June 20, 2002.--Treaty was read the first time, and together with the 
accompanying papers, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations and 
            ordered to be printed for the use of the Senate
                               __________

                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
99-118                    WASHINGTON : 2002

                         LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

                              ----------                              

                                    The White House, June 20, 2002.
To the Senate of the United States:
    I transmit herewith, for the advice and consent of the 
Senate to ratification, the Treaty Between the United States of 
America and the Russian Federation on Strategic Offensive 
Reductions, signed at Moscow on May 24, 2002 (the ``Moscow 
Treaty'').
    The Moscow Treaty represents an important element of the 
new strategic relationship between the United States and 
Russia. It will take our two nations along a stable, 
predictable path to substantial reductions in our deployed 
strategic nuclear warhead arsenals by December 31, 2012. When 
these reductions are completed, each country will be at the 
lowest level of deployed strategic nuclear warheads in decades. 
This will benefit the peoples of both the United States and 
Russia and contribute to a more secure world.
    The Moscow Treaty codifies my determination to break 
through the long impasse in further nuclear weapons reductions 
caused by the inability to finalize agreements through 
traditional arms control efforts. In the decade following the 
collapse of the Soviet Union, both countries' strategic nuclear 
arsenals remained far larger than needed, even as the United 
States and Russia moved toward a more cooperative relationship. 
On May 1, 2001, I called for a new framework for our strategic 
relationship with Russia, including further cuts in nuclear 
weapons to reflect the reality that the Cold War is over. On 
November 13, 2001, I announced the United States plan for such 
cuts--to reduce our operationally deployed strategic nuclear 
warheads to a level of between 1700 and 2200 over the next 
decade. I announced these planned reductions following a 
careful study within the Department of Defense. That study, the 
Nuclear Posture Review, concluded that these force levels were 
sufficient to maintain the security of the United States. In 
reaching this decision, I recognized that it would be 
preferable for the United States to make such reductions on a 
reciprocal basis with Russia, but that the United States would 
be prepared to proceed unilaterally.
    My Russian counterpart, President Putin, responded 
immediately and made clear that he shared these goals. 
President Putin and I agreed that our nations' respective 
reductions should be recorded in a legally binding document 
that would outlast both of our presidencies and provide 
predictability over the longer term. The result is a Treaty 
that was agreed without protracted negotiations. This Treaty 
fully meets the goals I set out for these reductions.
    It is important for there to be sufficient openness so that 
the United States and Russia can each be confident that the 
other is fulfilling its reductions commitment. The Parties will 
use the comprehensive verification regime of the Treaty on the 
Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms (the 
``START Treaty'') to provide the foundation for confidence, 
transparency, and predictability in further strategic offensive 
reductions. In our Joint Declaration on the New Strategic 
Relationship between the United States and Russia, President 
Putin and I also decided to establish a Consultative Group for 
Strategic Security to be chaired by Foreign and Defense 
Ministers. This body will be the principal mechanism through 
which the United States and Russia strengthen mutual 
confidence, expand transparency, share information and plans, 
and discuss strategic issues of mutual interest.
    The Moscow Treaty is emblematic of our new, cooperative 
relationship with Russia, but it is neither the primary basis 
for this relationship nor its main component. The United States 
and Russia are partners in dealing with the threat of terrorism 
and resolving regional conflicts. There is growing economic 
interaction between the business communities of our two 
countries and ever-increasing people-to-people and cultural 
contacts and exchanges. The U.S. military has put Cold War 
practices behind it, and now plans, sizes, and sustains its 
forces in recognition that Russia is not an enemy, Russia is a 
friend. Military-to-military and intelligence exchanges are 
well established and growing.
    The Moscow Treaty reflects this new relationship with 
Russia. Under it, each Party retains the flexibility to 
determine for itself the composition and structure of its 
strategic offensive arms, and how reductions are made. This 
flexibility allows each Party to determine how best to respond 
to future security challenges.
    There is no longer the need to narrowly regulate every step 
we each take, as did Cold War treaties founded on mutual 
suspicion and an adversarial relationship.
    In sum, the Moscow Treaty is clearly in the best interests 
of the United States and represents an important contribution 
to U.S. national security and strategic stability. I therefore 
urge the Senate to give prompt and favorable consideration to 
the Treaty, and to advise and consent to its ratification.

                                                    George W. Bush.
                          LETTER OF SUBMITTAL

                              ----------                              

                                    The Secretary of State,
                                                        Washington.
The President,
The White House.
    Mr. President: I have the honor to submit to you the Treaty 
Between the United States of America and the Russian Federation 
on Strategic Offensive Reductions (the Moscow Treaty), signed 
at Moscow on May 24, 2002.

                              INTRODUCTION

    The Moscow Treaty marks a new era in the relationship 
between the United States and Russia. This short, legally 
binding document codifies in a flexible manner both countries' 
commitment to make deep strategic offensive reductions. It 
facilitates the transition from strategic rivalry to a genuine 
strategic partnership based on the principles of mutual 
security, trust, openness, cooperation and predictability. The 
Moscow Treaty is one important element of a new strategic 
framework, which involves a broad array of cooperative efforts 
in political, economic and security areas.

                               BACKGROUND

    The Moscow Treaty codifies the deep reductions that you 
announced during the November 2001 Washington/Crawford Summit 
and President Putin announced at that time and a month later. 
It reflects the shared desire to conclude a legally binding 
document that would outlast both of your presidencies and to 
provide openness and predictability over the longer term in 
this important area of the U.S.-Russian relationship. The 
transition to a relationship based on mutual trust and 
cooperation enabled us to conclude an agreement in months, not 
years. At the same time, the Treaty affords flexibility to each 
Party to meet unforeseen future contingencies, while avoiding 
unnecessary restrictions on either Party's forces or 
activities.

                         REDUCTION REQUIREMENTS

    The United States and Russia both intend to carry out 
strategic offensive reductions to the lowest possible levels 
consistent with their national security requirements and 
alliance obligations, and reflecting the new nature of their 
strategic relations. The Treaty requires the United States and 
Russia to reduce and limit their strategic nuclear warheads to 
1700-2200 each by December 31, 2012, a reduction of nearly two-
thirds below current levels. The United States intends to 
implement the Treaty by reducing its operationally deployed 
strategic nuclear warheads to 1700-2200 through removal of 
warheads from missiles in their launchers and from heavy bomber 
bases, and by removing some missiles, launchers, and bombers 
from operational service.
    For purposes of this Treaty, the United States considers 
operationally deployed strategic nuclear warheads to be reentry 
vehicles on intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) in 
their launchers, reentry vehicles on submarine-launched 
ballistic missiles (SLBMs) in their launchers onboard 
submarines, and nuclear armaments loaded on heavy bombers or 
stored in weapons storage areas of heavy bomber bases. In 
addition, a small number of spare strategic nuclear warheads 
(including spare ICBM warheads) are located at heavy bomber 
bases. The United States does not consider these spares to be 
operationally deployed strategic nuclear warheads. In the 
context of this Treaty, it is clear that only ``nuclear'' 
reentry vehicles, as well as nuclear armaments, are subject to 
the 1700-2200 limit.

                         RELATIONSHIP TO START

    The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) continues in 
force unchanged by this Treaty. In accordance with its own 
terms, START will remain in force until December 5, 2009, 
unless it is superseded by a subsequent agreement or extended.
    START's comprehensive verification regime will provide the 
foundation for confidence, transparency and predictability in 
further strategic offensive reductions. As noted in the May 24 
Joint Declaration on the New Strategic Relationship, other 
supplementary measures, including transparency measures, may be 
agreed in the future.

                  BILATERAL IMPLEMENTATION COMMISSION

    The Treaty establishes a Bilateral Implementation 
Commission (BIC), a diplomatic consultative forum that will 
meetat least twice a year to discuss issues related to 
implementation of the Treaty. The BIC will be separate and distinct 
from the Consultative Group for Strategic Security, established by the 
Joint Declaration of May 24, which will be chaired by Foreign and 
Defense Ministers with the participation of other senior officials.

            ENTRY INTO FORCE; DURATION; RIGHT OF WITHDRAWAL

    The Treaty will enter into force on the date of the 
exchange of instruments of ratification. It is to remain in 
force until December 31, 2012, and may be extended by agreement 
of the Parties or superseded earlier by a subsequent agreement.
    The Treaty also provides that each Party, in exercising its 
national sovereignty, may withdraw from the Treaty upon three 
months' written notice to the other Party.

                       STATUS OF START II TREATY

    The START II Treaty, which was signed in 1993, and to which 
the Senate gave its advice and consent in 1996, never entered 
into force because Russia placed unacceptable conditions on its 
own ratification of START II. Russia's explicit linkage of 
START II to preservation of the ABM Treaty and entry into force 
of several agreements, signed in 1997, which related to ABM 
Treaty succession and ABM/TMD demarcation, made it impossible 
for START II to enter into force. With signature of the Moscow 
Treaty, the United States and Russia have now taken a decisive 
step beyond START II.

                               CONCLUSION

    Accompanying this report is an article-by-article analysis 
of the Treaty. By deeply reducing operationally deployed 
strategic nuclear warheads while preserving each Party's 
flexibility to meet unforeseen future contingencies, the Moscow 
Treaty will enhance the national security of the United States. 
I strongly recommend its transmission to the Senate for advice 
and consent to ratification at the earliest possible date.
            Respectfully submitted,
                                                   Colin L. Powell.
    Enclosures: As stated.
    

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