98258. Russians Say Yeltsin's Nuclear Pledge Fulfilled

By Linda D. Kozaryn

American Forces Press Service



	BRUSSELS, Belgium -- About this time last year, Russian 

President Boris Yeltsin announced his intention to stop aiming 

missiles at members of the NATO alliance. Russian officials now 

say Yeltsin's pledge has been fulfilled.

	Russia's nuclear weapons have been effectively detargeted, 

said Russian authorities attending a Permanent Joint Council 

meeting here April 29. In return, NATO authorities assured the 

Russians that alliance nations have done the same. 

	Both sides said nuclear weapons equipped with primary 

targeting codes or assignments, are now aimed at empty ocean, not 

at each other's territory.

	This NATO-Russia council meeting focused on theater nuclear 

weapon reductions, nuclear detargeting, and security and safety 

of stored, tactical nuclear weapon stocks. The United States, 

United Kingdom and France, NATO's three nuclear powers, gave 

presentations.

	NATO authorities gave Russian officials detailed briefings, 

demonstrating NATO's willingness to openly discuss nuclear 

issues. A senior NATO official said the historic information 

exchange was designed to promote transparency on both sides.

	"This was the first ever major consultation between Russia 

and NATO on nuclear issues," he said. It was held in NATO's 

presentation room, he added, "the sanctum of sanctums." 

	"When I was a young NATO official many years ago, we 

actually used to rehearse nuclear release procedures and nuclear 

scenarios in a Cold War situation [here]. Yet, here we are ... 

debating nuclear reductions with Russia."  

	NATO authorities highlighted aspects of the alliance's 

nuclear drawdown for the Russians, the official said. During the 

Cold War, for example, NATO had five types of tactical nuclear 

weapons in Europe. Now there is one -- free-fall gravity bombs 

carried on aircraft that can carry nuclear or conventional 

weapons. Even these weapons are being reduced, officials said.

	U.S. officials told the Russians, by next year, all of the 

tactical nuclear weapons withdrawn from Europe will have been 

destroyed. "It's not a question that they've been sent back to 

the United States to be stored to be brought back to Europe one 

day," the NATO official said. "They all will have been actually, 

physically destroyed." 

	NATO allies also expressed concern that Russia still seems 

to have a vastly larger tactical nuclear weapon stockpile than 

NATO. One main point of the meeting was a discussion of what has 

happened to those weapons, officials said. NATO wants to know 

what types of weapons the Russians have, where they are stored 

and what doctrine governs their use.

	The Russians, in turn, gave a presentation on their tactical 

nuclear weapons, which they are collecting into centralized 

storage sites. These sites make the weapons easier to guard and 

destroy. The Russians said the readiness level and research and 

development programs for these weapons have both been reduced.

	"We did have some useful information on the Russian side," 

the NATO official said. "We heard 50 percent of the tactical 

nuclear weapons currently have been reduced, which is encouraging 

news."

	Officials also shared information on procedures related to 

nuclear weapons safety and security. "This involves things like 

how good are your storage facilities; how good are your 

procedures for making sure there is no rogue access to nuclear 

weapons; how well trained are your personnel to operate safe 

procedures," the NATO official said.

	 The Russians also expressed gratitude to several allies for 

their help in transporting weapons.

	Nuclear experts from both sides will follow up on the 

council's discussion, the official said. "We'd like to identify 

certain key questions to be answered which can help us get the 

information we'd like to have for full transparency on both 

sides." 

	NATO officials would like to know, for example, which 

tactical nuclear weapons systems Russia will deploy after the 

current reductions and what Russia intends to keep in its 

tactical nuclear weapons arsenal.

	Russia provided a lot of useful information during the 

meeting, but tactical nuclear weapons is "an area which has been 

shrouded in mystery," the NATO official said. "There's been a lot 

of dialogue on strategic systems because of the [Strategic Arms 

Reduction Treaty] process so we have a full picture on that, but 

tactical nuclear weapons have been a rather murky area."

	This first NATO-Russia discussion on nuclear issues was a 

good starting point, the official concluded. But further 

information exchanges are needed before the two sides can discuss 

doctrine and strategy. "This was just a first round in sharing 

information on this once highly secret, highly sensitive area," 

he said. 



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