Arms Control Treaties

Antarctic Treaty (1959)

Hot Line Agreement (1963)

Limited Test Ban Treaty (1963)

Outer Space Treaty (1967)

Latin America Nuclear Free Zone Treaty (1967)

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (1968)

Seabed Treaty (1971)

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty I / ABM Treaty (1963)

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty I Interim Agreement (1972)

Threshold Test Ban Treaty (1974)

Peaceful Nuclear Explosions Treaty (1976)

Environmental Modification Convention (1977)

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty II Treaty (1979)

South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty (1985)

Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty - INF (1987)

Ballistic Missile Launch Notification Agreement (1988)

Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (1991)

Treaty of Pelindaba (1996)

Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (1996)


Antarctic Treaty (1959)

A twelve nation agreement to protect the peaceful status of the Antarctic Continent. It bans the following from Antarctica: The Treaty provides each party with the right to full on-site and aerial inspection of all Antarctic installations in order to verify these provisions.

Hot Line Agreement (1963)

Bilateral agreement establishing a direct communications link between US and Soviet heads of state for use in "time of emergency." Seeks to reduce the risk of a nuclear exchange stemming from accident, miscalculation, or surprise attack. Both sides connected by transatlantic cable and radio telegraph circuits for continuous direct communications. Updated in 1971 to include two US-USSR satellite communications circuits, along with multiple terminals in each country.

Limited Test Ban Treaty (1963)

Trilateral agreement negotiated by the US, USSR, and UK prohibiting tests of nuclear devices in the atmosphere, in outer space, and underwater. Allows nuclear testing to continue underground, so long as radioactive debris is not allowed "outside the territorial limits" of the testing state. The treaty has since been signed by a total of 116 countries, including potential nuclear states Argentina, Brazil, India, Israel, Pakistan, and South Africa. Though two major nuclear powers, France and the People's Republic of China, have not signed, they are now abiding by its provisions. In 1992, China exploded a bomb beyond the LTBT limits.

Outer Space Treaty (1967)

Trilateral agreement between the US, USSR, and UK banning: Eighty-six other nations have since signed the agreement.

Latin America Nuclear Free Zone Treaty (1967)

Multilateral agreement signed by 24 Latin American countries banning the manufacture, acquisition, testing, deployment, or use of nuclear weapons in Latin America. Argentina has not yet ratified the treaty and Cuba is the only country that has neither signed nor ratified the treaty.

Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (1968)

Multilateral agreement signed and ratified by the US, USSR, UK, and 133 non-nuclear-weapon states to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and to assure that the peaceful nuclear programs of non-nuclear-weapon states are not diverted to weapons production. Non-nuclear-weapons signatories specifically pledged not to develop, manufacture, or acquire nuclear weapons.

In May 1995, the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty was made permanent.

Seabed Treaty (1971)

Multilateral agreement between the US, USSR, UK, and 84 other countries banning the emplacement of nuclear weapons or "weapons of mass destruction" on the ocean floor beyond a 12-mile coastal zone. Allows signatories to observe all seabed "activities" of any other signatory beyond the 12-mile zone in order to ensure compliance.

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty I / ABM Treaty (1963)

Bilateral ratified treaty of "unlimited duration" between the US and USSR limiting each side's anti-ballistic missile (ABM) systems in order to prevent the deployment of nationwide ABM defenses, or a base for such a system. Each country is restricted to a single deployment area of 100 ABM launcher and missiles. The treaty prohibits the development, testing and deployment of space-based, sea-based, air-based and mobile land-based systems and components. Compliance is monitored by national technical means of verification and overseen by a Standing Consultative Commission.

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty I Interim Agreement (1972)

Bilateral agreement between the US and USSR of five-year duration which froze the number of strategic ballistic missiles at 1972 levels. Construction of additional land-based ICBM silos were prohibited, while SLBM launcher levels can be increased if corresponding reductions are made in older ICBM or SLBM launchers. Modernization of launchers is allowed, however, if kept within specific dimensions.

Threshold Test Ban Treaty (1974)

Bilateral, unratified agreement between the US and USSR prohibiting underground nuclear weapon tests with yield above 150 kilotons. Compliance is monitored through the use of national technical means (e.g. seismic stations outside the testing country). A protocol to the agreement specified that tests take place strictly defined testing sites and that upon ratification technical information be exchanged to improve verification procedures.

Peaceful Nuclear Explosions Treaty (1976)

Bilateral, unratified agreement between the US and USSR prohibiting peaceful nuclear explosions which were not covered by the TTBT, with yields exceeding 150 kilotons and group explosions having an aggregate yield of over 1,500 kilotons, no one of which can be more than 150 kilotons. A companion treaty to the TTBT, the PNET provides for verification through national technical means, data exchanges and visits to sites of explosions in certain instances.

Environmental Modification Convention (1977)

Multilateral agreement with 48 signatories prohibiting the hostile use of "environmental modification techniques" with widespread and long-lasting effects.

Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty II Treaty (1979)

Bilateral, unratified agreement between the US and USSR setting equal aggregate ceilings and subceilings on strategic offensive weapon systems and imposing qualitative restraints on existing and future strategic systems. Specifically, the SALT II equal ceilings include: In 1986 the U.S. repudiated its political commitment to remain within the SALT II limits.

South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty (1985)

Multilateral agreement among the nations of the South Pacific, which prohibits the testing, manufacture, and stationing of nuclear explosive devices, and the dumping of nuclear waste, within the zone.

Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty - INF (1987)

Bilateral ratified treaty between the US and USSR, which requires parties to eliminate all intermediate-range missiles (IRMs), shorter-range missiles (SRMs), and associated launchers, equipment, support facilities, and operating bases worldwide and to ban flight testing and production of these missiles as well as production of their launchers. Compliance is monitored using national technical means, five types of on-site inspection, and cooperative measures.

Ballistic Missile Launch Notification Agreement (1988)

Bilateral agreement between the US and USSR requiring each nation to notify the other party, "no less than twenty-four hours in advance, of the planned date, launch area, and area of impact for any launch of a strategic ballistic missile."

Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (1991)

Bilateral agreement between the US and USSR, which if ratified, would set a ceiling of 1,600 strategic nuclear delivery vehicles and 6,000 "accountable" warheads for each country. START cuts U.S. long-range nuclear warheads by 15%, Soviet by 25%. But both sides are permitted to continue modernization plans, and the number of nuclear warheads carried on some categories of strategic weapons is projected to actually increase by the late 1990s under the treaty.

Treaty of Pelindaba (1996)

Multilateral agreement signed by 49 of the 53 members of the Organization of African Unity pledged not to conduct research on, develop, test, or stockpile nuclear explosive devices; to prohibit the stationing of nuclear devices on their territory; to maintain the highest standards of protection of nuclear materials, facilities, and equipment; and to prohibit the dumping of radioactive waste.

The treaty establishes an African Commission on Nuclear Energy. The five nuclear states--the United States, C.I.S., France, Britain, and China--pledged their cooperation by signing two protocols attached to the treaty.

Madagascar and Seychelles abstained, and Somalia and Liberia were not in attendance because of internal unrest.

Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (1996)

Multilateral agreement signed by the US, USSR, UK, and 90 non-nuclear-weapon would ban any and all nuclear tests, big or small, above and below the Earth's surface. It established a worldwide monitoring system - including 170 seismic stations - to check air, water and soil for signals that someone set off a nuclear explosion.

India was the only nuclear state that refused to sign the treaty.