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

sional context as the important focus in framing tactical
nuclear weapons issues for analysis.
Conventional force balances, the suspended Conventional
Forces in Europe (CFE) framework, <strong>and</strong>
overall military concerns were central to one author,
<strong>and</strong> they were mentioned by the other authors as major
factors for framing tactical nuclear weapons issues.
Certainly Russia’s concerns about its entire frontier,
as well as regional balances, drive its tactical (<strong>and</strong>
strategic) nuclear force posture <strong>and</strong> doctrine. Efforts
to reinstate conventional forces transparency <strong>and</strong>
cooperation in Europe were seen as fundamental to
exp<strong>and</strong>ing the discussion toward addressing Russian
nuclear weapons <strong>and</strong> positioning.
Shifts in the global strategic environment toward
the Far East were suggested as altering national security
resource decisions <strong>and</strong> affecting strategic forces
considerations, particularly for Russia, but also for the
United States <strong>and</strong> European states. In view of this altered
environment, suggestions were made for changing
the basis for strategic arms control discussions
toward a comprehensive approach to nuclear weapons
<strong>and</strong> toward consideration of European security issues
based on the resulting enlargement of bargaining
breathing room.
Aligned with some of those ideas, a comprehensive
discussion of U.S.-Russia strategic engagement
was presented as a framework for addressing tactical
nuclear weapons issues. Several options were presented
<strong>and</strong> assessed, along with bilateral conditions
necessary to move forward on these fronts, with particular
attention to composite limits on the full range
of nuclear weapons, allowing each side flexibility in
how it constitutes <strong>and</strong> postures its forces. U.S. nuclear
weapons in Europe would be included in this com-
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