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Russian Nuclear Weapons: Past, Present, and Future - Strategic ...

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CHAPTER 6<br />

CAUGHT BETWEEN SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS:<br />

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN<br />

CONVENTIONAL AND NUCLEAR<br />

CAPABILITIES IN RUSSIAN MILITARY<br />

THOUGHT<br />

INTRODUCTION<br />

Daniel Goure<br />

<strong>Russian</strong> security policies <strong>and</strong> military plans are<br />

undergoing the most profound set of changes of any<br />

period since the collapse of the Soviet Union. In some<br />

ways, this is the best of times for the <strong>Russian</strong> military.<br />

Moscow has the fortune of a government in Washington<br />

committed to “pushing the reset button” in<br />

U.S.-<strong>Russian</strong> relations. The Obama administration has<br />

made it clear that it intends to take <strong>Russian</strong> interests<br />

<strong>and</strong> opinions seriously in everything from the deployment<br />

of missile defenses to the imposing of new United<br />

Nations (UN) sanctions on Iran. A new <strong>Strategic</strong><br />

Arms Reduction Treaty (START) agreement has been<br />

signed that allows Russia to make inevitable reductions<br />

in its strategic nuclear forces under the guise<br />

of the furtherance of strategic parity with the United<br />

States. If <strong>Russian</strong> sources are to be trusted, the U.S.<br />

Government committed to limiting its deployments of<br />

missile defenses in Europe. The pace of the North Atlantic<br />

Treaty Organization’s (NATO) eastward expansion<br />

has been slowed, possibly halted for good. The<br />

<strong>Russian</strong> Navy’s lease on the naval base at Sevastopol<br />

was extended for an additional 25 years. All in all, it<br />

has been a good year for the <strong>Russian</strong> military. It might<br />

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