Will the U.S. Missile Defense Program undermine the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty?
The missile defence shield proposals are in clear violation of the ABM Treaty. The treaty forbids the US and Russia from developing a continental missile shield. Many supporters of a missile defence shield claim that the ABM treaty is a Cold War relic. It is true that the treaty is not perfect, but it did make later treaties possible. Together, they form the current multilateral disarmament regime. If the ABM Treaty is abrogated or substantially altered, the entire architecture of arms control and disarmament agreements could fall. In addition to the ABM treaty, the missile defense program violates the UN Outer Space Treaty. It also contradicts the commitment made by the nuclear weapons states, including the United States, to take steps to eliminate their nuclear arsenals during the May 2000 Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference.
