Russian President Vladimir Putin's announcement that he's leaving the last nuclear arms control treaty between the United States and Russia probably didn't impact American's lives in one way or another.
Many probably aren't aware of New Strategic Arms Treaty (NEW START) is really all about. Writer Serge Schmemann sized up Putin's ambition in his story "Something is Missing from American's Greatest Fears" - "Putin is engaging in saber rattling to convince his own people that the war against Ukraine is a life or death struggle of the superpowers."
Many Americans probably didn't take notice of this change in arms control policy. Some might be surprised that there are any arms control pacts between our country and Russia, as stated by Schmemann. As satisfied as it was not to allow Mr. Putin a victory by kicking off a panic in the West, the threat of nuclear war is still with us. More than 30 years after the end of the Cold War, the threat of nuclear obliteration simply doesn't rank among Americans' greatest fears. Global terror reigned supreme after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and now Americans are afraid of cyberwarfare.
However, we must face the reality. The sharply reduced Russian and American nuclear arsenals (at least for now) are still enough to wipe out much of the world, and China is pushing hard to become the third nuclear superpower, and at least six other countries, including the dictatorship North Korea, have nuclear weapons. So does Britain, France, Israel, India, and Pakistan. Schememann made a good point about today's nuclear politics: "perversely, the complexity of today's world has even generated something akin to nostalgia for a time when there were only two superpowers to deal with and stability depended on mutually assured destruction."
What the world is seeing now is a multi-polar world where nation-states are members of different blocks and work toward their own interests in those blocks. Authoritarianism is in the background, of course. The United States is a part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the Quadrilateral Security Dialog. China and Russia are in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization with Iran. Turkey is an observing member of the SCO and a NATO member as well, as the country can pursue it's interest in both blocks. China's lesson to lesser developed countries is that nation-states can pursue development without pursing democracy, there's where the authoritarianism comes in.
However, there might be some light in our world. Perhaps order can come out of chaos. There is a positive in our story at this time, as stated by Leonor Tomero in her story "With New START Setbacks Challenging Arms Control, US Must Work to Reduce Chances of Nuclear War, With or Without Russia." Arms control talks between Russia and the United States might not be likely at this time. However, Secretary of State Anthony Blinkin recently explained renewing New START: "an unconstrained nuclear competition would endanger us all." Hours after Putin announced his suspension of the treaty, he stated that the decision was reversable. Dialog between Russia and the United States on a successor treaty to New START would be a positive development. Maybe even a step toward an easing of tensions in the new Cold War.
The old Soviet Union agreed to arms control when the US and its allies had achieved dominance. Perhaps Putin's lack of success in Ukraine will open some doors.
Jason Sibert is the Lead Writer for the Peace Economy
