Mutually assured stalemate
THE Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) treaty is either an ugly cold-war relic, or a bulwark against the re-emergence of hot nuclear dangers, depending on where you stand in one of America's sharpest policy debates. Signed in 1972, the accord was intended to stabilise the American-Soviet stand-off by entrenching each side's ability to wipe the other out. As amended in 1974, the treaty permits each side only one limited ABM system. It also rules out ABM systems at sea, in the air or in space.
This article appeared in the Briefing section of the print edition under the headline “Mutually assured stalemate”
From the July 31st 1999 edition
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