Though it is possible to print these browsable pages at fax quality, the result will be unsatisfactory. More information on the Open Book is available. Copyright 1999, the Brookings Institution Press. This framework can now be used, if the nuclear weapon states have the political will to do so, to cut the numbers and mil- itary significance of nuclear weapons steadily and drastically. It is not yet possible to describe in detail the far-reaching changes that will probably have to be made in the international system to allow complete abolition.
Deactivation means that most weapons are unusable for weeks or months.
This could be achieved, for example, by removing the warheads from ballistic missiles. By this time Britain, France, and China, and it is hoped, India, Pakistan, and Israel, wouIcl be engaged in the nuclear arms control process. This is not complete abolition, but it amounts to the longest steps in that direction that can be realistically projected uncler current inter- national conditions. Second, we propose that at every stage of the deep cuts pro- gram the launch readiness of the remaining ballistic missiles would be decreased in a manner that does not increase their vulnerability. Although technically each stage could probably be completed within about five years, their timing will have to take into account political as well as technical issues.