Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation

Moderates and Conservatives Supporting Nuclear Weapons Cuts

by John Isaacs [contact information]

Updated November 4, 2009

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates

“I think actually that there is a willingness and an ability to make deeper reductions. We are at about – the goal now, I think, is to get down to something on the order of 1,700 to 2,200 deployed warheads, and we can probably do better than that. The real issue has centered around the nature of the agreement we should have with the Russians. My own view is, there will be another agreement with the Russians. I am confident that the new – that whoever is elected president, we will go to the bargaining table. If we don’t have time to get a new START agreement before the current – before the Moscow Treaty expires, there is provision for both sides to extend the existing treaty, with the verification procedures and so on. And I have every confidence that we will do that.”

October 28, 2008 speech at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ)

"The Cold War ended almost twenty years ago, and the time has come to take further measures to reduce dramatically the number of nuclear weapons in the world's arsenals. In so doing, the United States can – and indeed, must – show the kind of leadership the world expects from us, in the tradition of American presidents who worked to reduce the nuclear threat to mankind...As the Administration reviews its nuclear weapons posture, it should, I believe, seek to reduce the size of our nuclear arsenal to the lowest number possible consistent with our security requirements and global commitments. This means a move, as rapidly as possible, to a significantly smaller force."

June 3, 2009 Senate floor speech

Former Republican Secretaries of State George Shultz and Henry Kissinger, former Democratic Secretary of Defense William Perry, and former Democratic Senator Sam Nunn

“The U.S. and Russia, which possess close to 95% of the world's nuclear warheads, have a special responsibility, obligation and experience to demonstrate leadership. Some steps are already in progress, such as the ongoing reductions in the number of nuclear warheads deployed on long-range, or strategic, bombers and missiles.”

January 15, 2008 Wall Street Journal op-ed

The Congressional Commission On the Strategic Posture Of The United States

Included Republicans James Schlesinger, former Secretary of Energy and Secretary of Defense; John Foster, Director Emeritus of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; Keith Payne, CEO and President, National Institute for Public Policy; Fred Ikle, former Director, Arms Control and Disarmament Agency; James Woolsey, former Director, Central Intelligence Agency; and Bruce Tarter, former Director, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

“The moment appears ripe for a renewal of arms control with Russia, and this bodes well for a continued reduction in the nuclear arsenal. The United States and Russia should pursue a step-by-step approach and take a modest first step to ensure that there is a successor to START I when it expires at the end of 2009.”

May 2009 final report

Council on Foreign Relations Task Force

Task Force participants included Spencer P. Boyer, Linton F. Brooks, Ashton B. Carter, John Deutch, Charles D. Ferguson, Michèle A. Flournoy, John A. Gordon, Lisa E. Gordon-Hagerty, Eugene E. Habiger, J. Bryan Hehir, Laura S. H. Holgate, Frederick J. Iseman, Arnold Kanter, Ronald F. Lehman II, Jack F. Matlock Jr., Franklin C. Miller, George R. Perkovich, William J. Perry, Mitchell B. Reiss, Lynn Rusten, Scott D. Sagan, Brent Scowcroft, Benn Tannenbaum

“The Task Force supports efforts to renew legally binding arms control pacts with Russia by seeking follow-on agreements to START and the 2002 Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty (SORT). The report also urges the United States and Russia to initiate a serious strategic dialogue, because it is only through such engagement that they can open up opportunities for deeper reductions in their arsenals and gain a better sense of the feasibility of moving toward multilateral nuclear arms control.”

April 2009 final report

Partnership for a Secure America Statement on U.S.-Russian Window of Opportunity

Howard Baker, U.S. Senator (R-TN) 1967-85
Samuel Berger, National Security Advisor 1997-2001
Harold Brown, Secretary of Defense 1977-81
Frank Carlucci, Secretary of Defense 1987-89
James F. Collins, U.S. Ambassador to Russia 1997-2001
John C. Danforth, U.S. Senator (R-MO) 1977-95
Kenneth M. Duberstein, White House Chief of Staff 1988-89
Susan Eisenhower, President, Eisenhower Group, Inc.
Slade Gorton, U.S. Senator (R-WA) 1981-87, 1989-2001
Lee Hamilton, U.S. Congressman (D-IN) 1965-99, PSA Co-Chair
Gary Hart, U.S. Senator (D-CO) 1975-87
Arthur Hartman, Ambassador to Soviet Union 1981-87
Rita E. Hauser, Chair, International Peace Institute
Carla Hills, U.S. Trade Representative 1989-93
E. Neville Isdell, Chairman, U.S.-Russia Business Council
Nancy Kassebaum Baker, U.S. Senator (R-KS) 1978-97
Thomas Kean, Governor, New Jersey 1982-90
Donald M. Kendall, former Chairman and CEO, Pepsico
John Lehman, Secretary of the Navy 1981-87
Richard Leone, President, The Century Foundation
Jack Matlock, Ambassador to Soviet Union 1987-91
Robert McFarlane, National Security Advisor 1983-85
Donald McHenry, Ambassador to UN 1979-81
Robert S. McNamara, Secretary of Defense 1961-68
Sam Nunn, U.S. Senator (D-GA) 1972-96
William Perry, Secretary of Defense 1994-97
Thomas Pickering, Undersecretary of State 1997-2000
Warren Rudman, U.S. Senator (R-NH) 1980-92, PSA Co-Chair
Alan Simpson, U.S. Senator (R-WY) 1979-97
Theodore Sorensen, White House Special Counsel 1961-63
James Symington, U.S. Congressman (D-MO) 1969-77
Edward Verona, President, US-Russia Business Council
John Whitehead, Deputy Secretary of State 1985-88
Timothy E. Wirth, U.S. Senator (D-CO) 1987-93
Frank Wisner, Undersecretary of State 1992-93

“We, the undersigned, agree that to repair the U.S.-Russia relationship, both sides must take steps to restore mutual confidence and trust. The Obama Administration can begin by . . .Advancing the US-Russia dialogue on arms control and non-proliferation, and working to extend or replace the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), which could be followed by another stage of verified nuclear disarmament.”

February 26, 2009 statement

The Commission on WMD Proliferation and Terrorism

Included Republicans such as former Senator Jim Talent (R-MO), now distinguished fellow at Heritage Foundation; Robin Cleveland, former Associate Director at the White House Office of Management and Budget; and Stephen G. Rademaker, former Assistant Secretary of State under President George W. Bush

“The Commission believes it imperative that we continue to reduce the size of the U.S. and Russian nuclear stockpiles in a structured and transparent manner. Consequently, we believe that the next administration should engage with Russia at the earliest possible date to negotiate additional reductions in both countries’ strategic stockpiles and to agree on transparency measures that can be in place by the end of 2009, when START expires. Such an agreement would send an important signal to the rest of the world regarding U.S. and Russian commitments to negotiate in good faith on effective measures relating to nuclear disarmament. Setting additional benchmarks for further reductions would serve as a natural reinforcement to continue this important strategic partnership in fighting terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.”

December 2008 commission report

Former Secretary of State James Baker

James A. Baker III, who was secretary of state when the Berlin Wall fell, was in Moscow for a conference on the politics of Caspian Sea oil and natural gas riches that both Russia and the West are maneuvering to obtain access to. Mr. Baker called the goal of eliminating nuclear weapons laudable but said Russian-American relations could be more immediately revived with the measure of resuming talks on prolonging the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or Start I, which expires in December.

March 19, 2009 New York Times article

Former Co-Chairs of the 9/11 Commission Thomas H. Kean (R) and Lee H. Hamilton (D)

“More nuclear-armed states means more risks to peace and stability…We can help by making deeper nuclear arms reductions, ratifying the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and fulfilling the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty -- steps that would have a powerful, positive effect.”

November 9, 2008 Washington Post op-ed

Retired Ambassadors Max M. Kampelman and Thomas Graham Jr.

“The road from the world of today, with thousands of nuclear weapons in national arsenals to a world free of this threat, will not be an easy one to take, but it is clear U.S. leadership is essential to the journey and there is growing worldwide support for that civilized call for zero.”

April 2, 2008 Washington Times op-ed

Rep. Daniel E. Lungren (R-CA)

“The President should continue both negotiations with other countries and unilateral initiatives to achieve further reductions in nuclear arms to minimum levels…the President should agree to the verifiable reduction of deployed nuclear weapons of both the United States and the Russian Federation to equal levels of 1,000, and a total nuclear inventory of not more than 3,000, by the year 2015.”

March 13, 2008 legislation

Former Rep. Mickey Edwards (R-OK)

“Unlike George W. Bush, Reagan did not ‘look into the eyes’ of Mikhail Gorbachev. He looked at the nuclear weapons arsenals in both America and the Soviet Union and dedicated much of his presidency to ridding the world of the nuclear menace, hammering out arms reduction agreements.”

February 4, 2008 Washington Times op-ed

Senator Richard G. Lugar (R-IN)

“First, it is vital that the START Treaty with Russia be renewed. When the Senate gave its consent to ratification to the Moscow Treaty in 2002, it did so knowing that the United States could rely on START Treaty's verification regime. It provides important assurances to both sides. At the time, this committee was assured that extension of START was a very high priority. Unfortunately, little progress has been made, and the treaty will expire in 11 months. In other words, the conceptual underpinning of our strategic relationship with Russia depends upon something that is about to expire. Such an outcome will be seen as weakening the international nonproliferation regime.”

January 13, 2009 statement at confirmation hearing for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

Stephen M. Younger, former head of nuclear research and development at Los Alamos National Laboratory

“Perhaps the most prudent course would be to show good faith by reducing existing nuclear stockpiles while developing rigorous verification technologies that would provide assurance against cheaters. A detailed plan could be established with goals and timelines, including off-ramps in case we cannot find adequate means of verification or if international tensions rise to unacceptable levels.”

January 10, 2009 Wall Street Journal op-ed

Retired General Lance W. Lord, former commander of the Air Force Space Command in Colorado

“As a first step, the U.S. and Russia need to extend the inspection and verification provisions of the START Treaty, which is due to expire at the end of 2009. But the truly innovative part will be to pursue the goal of a new nuclear strategy that isn't driven by the current numbers of nuclear weapons each side possesses. Instead, it should be driven by the best estimates on what constitutes adequate deterrence levels against a broad array of new threats, including possible actions by countries like Iran and North Korea.”

January 9, 2009 International Herald Tribune op-ed

AAAS-CSIS Report on Nuclear Weapons in the 21st Century

Authors included John C. Browne, Los Alamos National Laboratory (retired); Clark Murdock, former deputy director of the Air Force’s headquarters planning function; Francis Slakey, American Physical Society; Benn Tannenbaum, American Association for the Advancement of Science; and Jessica Yeats, Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Workshop chairs included John Hamre, former deputy secretary of defense, J. Michael Cornwall, University of California Los Angeles; former Rep. James Leach; Franklin C. Miller, former Special Assistant to President George W. Bush and Senior Director for Defense Policy and Arms Control on the National Security Council

“As part of a new strategic dialogue with Russia, the United States should reinvigorate nuclear arms talks with the Russians: first, to extend START-I (and its suite of verification measures), and then, to systematically account for total inventories of U.S.-Russian nuclear weapons and achieve deeper reductions in U.S.-Russian and global nuclear stockpiles.”

December 1, 2008 report

Ambassador Linton F. Brooks, former Administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Energy

“Ambassador Brooks advocated a simple approach that prioritizes transparency, predictability, and the political value of a successful agreement. The concerns of each side must be provided for; in general, Russia prizes predictability, while the United States seeks to preserve the ability to react to unforeseen international developments. The two countries should negotiate one treaty to replace START and the 2002 Treaty of Moscow. This treaty must: Reduce the number of operationally deployed warheads below the limit set by the 2002 Treaty of Moscow; Limit launchers to a number slightly above current levels; Both launcher and warhead limits should be met no later than 2011, to ensure transparency and decrease mutual suspicion quickly.”

September 4, 2008 speech at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

Peter Huessy of the National Defense University Foundation

“I believe there is no contradiction between seeking lower levels of nuclear weapons and maintaining a deterrent second to none.”

January 29, 2009 OpinionEditorials.com op-ed

Former Utah Senator Jake Garn (R)

“Strong citizen and congressional support will be needed for the new president to take steps toward nuclear arms reduction. President-elect Obama will need to reach out to Russia to negotiate the reduction in the nuclear arsenals of both countries. Then we can realistically invite all relevant nations to craft a lasting treaty for the abolition of nuclear arms. This would be a giant step toward true global as well as U.S. security.”

November 28, 2008 Salt Lake Tribune op-ed

J.D. Crouch, former Deputy National Security Adviser and Assistant Secretary for International Security Policy

"And so…I think a lot…can be accomplished in terms of reducing mutually our arsenals, frankly in terms of our stockpile, reducing unilaterally our stockpile. We have way too many weapons in the stockpile. All these things can be done as well as the very important set of steps that were outlined in the Gang of Four….op-eds that frankly aren’t connected to abolition in any way."

April 13, 2009 debate

Moderate Democratic Senators Joe Lieberman, Ben Nelson, and Mark Begich, along with Republican Senators James Inhofe, Jon Kyl, Ben Nelson, John McCain, Jeff Sessions, Mike Johanns, Roger Wicker, Orrin Hatch

"We support your determination to bring into force a follow-on agreement to START prior to its lapse on December 5th of this year. However, we will be reluctant to support any agreement that is explicitly conditioned on U.S. abandonment of missile defenses in Europe or otherwise linked to a U.S. decision to curtail or abandon those defenses."

July 2, 2009 letter to President Obama in Congressional Record

Washington Times Editorial Board

“Planned reductions in nuclear stockpiles, as delineated in the July 6 Joint Understanding for the START Follow-On Treaty, make sense for both countries, but the most dramatic drawdowns in warheads and delivery systems already took place in the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union. What is left is merely fine-tuning. The critical nuclear issue is not the size but the composition of our stockpiles.”

July 9, 2009 editorial

Former Republican Secretary of State George Shultz

There are a number of things, two of which you mentioned, that are on the critical path. The START treaty is one. If that comes here and the Senate declines to ratify it, it’s over. The United States is not in the game.

October 27, 2009 Carnegie Endowment speech

Gen. Eugene Habiger, USAF, (Ret.), former commander-in-chief of STRATCOM

While we have made some progress in the twenty years since the end of the Cold War, over 20,000 nuclear weapons remain in the possession of nine nations around the world. While numbers like these brought comfort to some at an earlier time, in our post-9/11 world they have the potential to bring grave danger to all. Aggressive steps to reduce these weapons will help prevent them from falling into the hands of terrorists. While we have a long road ahead of us, I am cautiously optimistic that we can achieve this goal. I have been encouraged by reports on the ongoing negotiations between the U.S. and Russia on the follow-on to the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START).

October 28, 2009 The Hill op-ed