Tactical Nuclear Weapons and NATO.pdf - Program on Strategic ...

leaving a trail of confusion as to the way ahead for
conventional arms control in Europe.
EUROPEAN SECURITY AND ARMS CONTROL
IN EUROPE
A recent report by the German Institut für Friedensforschung
und Sicherheitspolitik (IFSH) analyzed
the challenges <strong>and</strong> prospects for arms control in
Europe. 31 The study noted that 20 years after the end
of the Cold War, the military balance in Europe has
been reversed, in favor of <strong>NATO</strong>. The Alliance now
has many more member states than in 1989. <strong>NATO</strong>’s
conventional military capabilities are vastly superior
to Russia’s, both in quantitative <strong>and</strong> qualitative terms.
The number of heavy weapons exceeds that of Russia
two- or threefold. Russia’s equipment is much older
<strong>and</strong> procurement expenditures over the past decade
are only 16 percent of that of the European Union (EU)
<strong>NATO</strong> countries. Military superiority is particularly
marked with regard to military research <strong>and</strong> development
(R&D). In dollar outlays for R&D, <strong>NATO</strong>-
Europe has an overall 4:1 superiority, as well as a 7:1
superiority in military spending <strong>and</strong> a 6:1 advantage
in procurement. This imbalance is unlikely to change
in the foreseeable future, despite Russian increases in
defense spending. Nevertheless, in some regions such
as the Baltic states, Russian forces still have a regional
superiority. This imbalance is viewed with alarm by
the states in this region, <strong>and</strong> it poses a formidable challenge
for future conventional arms control. The only
other defense category in which Russia is superior in
terms of numbers is TNWs.
Thanks to the Obama administration, there has
been a revival of interest in arms control in the last 3
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