The Nuclear Stakes in Russia's Crisis Russia is not Indonesia. A political and economic collapse would means much more than depressed stock prices. Russia still has over 20,000 nuclear weapons scattered over 90 sites, including 6,250 deployed long-range missile and bomber weapons. Thousands of these systems are still on hair-trigger alert, ready to launch at the United States in 15 minutes. Russia's nuclear command and control is deteriorating as budget cuts prevent maintenance and replacement of key systems.
Nuclear scientists are seriously underpaid and increasingly desperate.
The danger is that well-financed programs in Iran, Iraq, or even in the mountains of Afghanistan, might buy the services of these experts. Alexander Lebed, the retired general and now governor of the Krasnoyarsk region foreshadowed another dangerous possibility last month. He wrote then-Prime Minister Kiriyenko saying he was considering taking control of the nuclear weapons stationed in his province. Nuclear Solutions First priority, of course, goes to resolving the overall economic and political crisis. But even with both beleaguered presidents fighting daily battles with their opposition-controlled legislatures, there are still steps that could avert the worst case scenarios.