Document created: 4 September 03
Air & Space Power Journal - Fall 2003

Arms Control: Cooperative Security in a Changing Environment edited by Jeffrey A. Larsen. Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. (http://www.rienner. com), 1800 30th Street, Suite 314, Boulder, Colorado 80301, 2002, 413 pages, $65.00 (hardcover), $24.50 (softcover).

In the years since the dissolution of the former Soviet Union, a diverse literature has emerged to explore the manifold implications of this momentous event. This collection of essays compiled by Jeffrey Larsen addresses the arms-control dimension of the post–Cold War era, specifically the search for cooperative security in a global environment that bears marked differences from the period before the Soviet hammer and sickle was lowered for the last time. This anthology, an update of an earlier book- Arms Control toward the Twenty-First Century (1996)- draws upon the insights of several authors who contributed to the original volume, in addition to those of other scholars who bring considerable expertise to bear on this topic. The new book is divided topically into four sections: arms-control concepts and history, weapons-related issues, regional perspectives, and new items on the arms-control agenda.

The contextual setting of arms control is the theme of the book’s first section. Michael Wheeler’s historical review of arms control is a useful survey for readers new to the literature, as well as a reminder that post–Cold War arms control will continue to be a pervasive part of international relations, although it may take different forms from its antecedents. Schuyler Foerster’s essay points out that these new forms will be a function, at least in part, of trends such as the global spread of technology, emergence of new states, and proliferation of state and nonstate actors. Departing from this structural view, Jennifer Sims provides insights into the influence of domestic-level variables on arms control. Using the United States as a case study, she illustrates how strategic culture; political and legal institutions; economic and technological factors; and elites, interest groups, and public opinion will continue to shape US arms-control policy, but in new ways. Clearly, a more complex, dynamic international setting may render traditional verification of treaty-limited activities and items more difficult. Accordingly, Joseph Pilat suggests a greater use of openness, transparency, and confidence-building measures to make arms control more cooperative and less competitive.

Preventing the spread of arms is the focus of the second section of the book. Forrest Waller argues persuasively that a transformation of strategic nuclear arms control will enable this enterprise to play a continuing role in US-Russian relations and elsewhere to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons. Guy Roberts makes a strong case to sustain the Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program with Russia to dispose of excess fissile materials and provide alternative employment for nuclear scientists and engineers. Despite its slow pace and shortfalls, CTR serves US interests by keeping nuclear materials away from terrorists and rogue states. The broader proliferation problem is addressed in three essays by Leonard Spector, Marie Isabelle Chevrier, and Jo Husbands. Spector’s examination of diplomatic initiatives to curb nuclear proliferation reveals that these measures have generally been successful and, when balanced with military preparedness, could improve opportunities to deter or defeat nuclear threats. Although the objectives of nuclear arms control overlap in some ways with those of chemical and biological arms control, in other ways they are different due to the nature of the weapons. These differences make chemical and biological arms control more difficult and, in the case of biological weapons, more urgent. Yet, as Chevrier points out, there have been problems implementing the Chemical Weapons Convention and strengthening the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention- problems that may have less to do with technical and legal issues than with political differences among decision makers who perceive divergent paths to national security. Despite the numerous obstacles that hamper the achievement of nuclear, chemical, and biological arms control, Husbands’s discussion of attempts to constrain the global proliferation of conventional arms illuminates an oft neglected yet equally important challenge.

The third section of the book addresses regional perspectives on past, present, and future arms control. Aside from Jeffrey McCausland’s essay on progress in European arms control, the other authors present a mixed picture of achievements against a background of regional factors that could militate against future prospects. Glen Segell’s discussion of the Middle East’s historical record suggests meager gains unless a constructive dialogue and general agreement occur on norms and forms of behavior conducive to stability. Although the disarmament of Iraq might resolve some barriers to progress, Iran’s nuclear program, coupled with long-standing regional political and religious disputes, may lead to less- not more- cooperation. Christopher Carr’s essay on Africa reveals that traditional and nontraditional approaches have had some success controlling the spread of small arms, but until African societies tire of internecine conflict, efforts to curb these weapons will continue to resemble more a patchwork of measures than formal arms control. Similarly, Peter Lavoy observes that until India and Pakistan embrace restraint and reciprocity, South Asia will remain a crisis-prone region where nuclear war remains a possibility. Brad Roberts notes that East Asia has reached a fork in the road. Although arms-control agreements have played an important role in that region, future events could unravel past success.

Future challenges for arms control are the focus of the fourth section of the book. Kerry Kartchner concludes from his examination of the offense-defense relationship that, although the United States will not abandon deterrence, it will jettison its Cold War definition of deterrence in order to answer questions about who should be deterred, what the United States seeks to deter, and how US forces and diplomacy should be developed for new forms of deterrence. Patricia McFate’s essay explores the tension between reconciling the unilateral pursuit of US goals in space and adhering to the international pacts the United States has signed. Current space arms-control accords are the product of a different era, yet the United States has interests that may conflict with these agreements. The United States has reached a juncture where its choices could affect the international community for many years. Not only has a new age presented new arms-control challenges in traditional environments, such as outer space, this new age poses challenges in new realms, such as cyberspace. Gregory Rattray assesses growing US dependence on computer networks, particularly for military operations, and the rise in cyber attacks. Undertaking “cyber arms control” will confront the United States with legal, political, technical, and economic factors never before encountered in traditional arms control. Changes in the structure of the international system will also influence future forms of arms control. John Nagl offers that the emergence of a two-tiered world, a concept drawn from Donald Snow, composed of democratic, liberal economies and nondemocratic, nonmarket economies, as well as a diverse range of nonstate and substate actors, will take arms control into uncharted areas. Clearly, as James Wirtz observes in the concluding essay, we stand at a crossroads in the history of arms control and cooperation, poised to enter a new century whose problems will be no less challenging and whose opportunities no less intriguing than they were at the beginning of the last century.

If this anthology has gaps or omissions, none were evident to this reviewer. Without exception, the essays are timely, informative, and well written. The book also includes a chronology of arms control from 1945 through mid-2002 and an appendix with synopses of 42 arms-control treaties, agreements, and organizations. Arms Control is recommended reading for scholars, arms-control neophytes, seasoned practitioners, and anyone whose profession could be touched by the subject.

Lt Col Charles E. Costanzo, USAF
Maxwell AFB, Alabama

Disclaimer

The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.