I'm John Bachelor. Arms control. It is 1972. Richard Nixon is the president of the United States.

Russia has ruled absolutely by a man named Brezhnev and the gathering of the major forces,

military, state security, and the economy. There is the depths of the Cold War. And then

an announcement that there will be a treaty.

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Treaty to be signed in the spring of 1972. An election year,

very helpful to the Nixon administration for re-election. But in any event, that moment has now passed. I welcome Andrea Stricker

of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracy, writing most recently about why this is a moment

to reflect upon the success of 1972 and regret the failure of the two nuclear powers, the United States and Russia, to update

and to enhance their initial movement, to cap, to control, to inspect, and maybe to dream

about doing away with strategic nuclear weapons.

Andrea, a very good evening to you.

Salt 1 was accepted.

Salt 2 was rejected.

That had to do with the Russian invasion, Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and the Senate

refused to endorse the Salt 2.

Then we came to the Strategic Arms Reduction Talks, which is why it's an acronym.

His name is Stark.

Start, S-T-A-R-T.

Start 1 was 1991, that is the George W.H-W. Bush administration.

Start 2 was 1993.

That is the Clinton administration. New Start. was 1993. That is the Clinton administration.

New Start was 2011, the Obama administration.

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