The politics of agreements on arms control and disarmament

P. Terrence Hopmann

Chapter 1 in Handbook on the Politics of International Agreements, 2026, pp 10-35 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter examines how inter-state and domestic politics have influenced the negotiation of agreements on arms control and disarmament. It begins with an analysis of the political principles that serve as the foundation for agreements about arms control, including stabilizing deterrence, preventing the development and deployment of new weapons systems, and assuring crisis stability. This is followed by a review of major arms control agreements reached since World War II. It then examines two major sets of agreements: 1) bilateral agreements between the United States and the Soviet Union (Russia) in the Strategic Arms Limitations Talks (SALT, START, SORT, New START), and 2) multilateral agreements between NATO and the Warsaw Treaty Organization about conventional weapons in Europe (Mutual Balanced Force Reductions and the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty). It concludes with a critical analysis of the politics underlying the collapse of the global arms control regime in the 21st century.

Keywords: Arms Control; Disarmament; NATO; Warsaw Pact; SALT; START; MBFR; CFE (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035318582
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