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2002 United States Special Weapons
Nuclear and Missile
Proliferation News

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March

• 22 March 2002: Bolton Calls U.S.-Russia Arms Talks "Very Productive."
• 21 March 2002U.S., Russia Hold Third Session of Arms Reduction Negotiations.
• 17 March 2002: The U.S. does not envisage the use of nuclear weapons in its latest strategy review, according to Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz. The objective, he said, is "to deter other people from using weapons of mass destruction against us."
• 13 March 2002: U.S. Goal: Keep Weapons of Mass Destruction Out Of Terrorists' Hands.
• 13 March 2002: U.S.-Russia Seek Legal Accord For Arms Cuts.
• 13 March 2002:Powell Rejects Reports U.S. Is Boosting Reliance on Nuclear Weapons.
• 11 March 2002: Defense Department Responds to Leaks on Nuclear Posture Review.
• 11 March 2002: Myers Says U.S. Nuclear Review Lists Deterrence Options.
• 10 March 2002: Responding to news reports March 9 based on leaked copies of a secret Defense Department review of U.S. nuclear weapons plans, the department refused comment on details, but said the review was the latest in a long series conducted ever since nuclear weapons were first developed.
• 10 March 2002: The Defense Department's Nuclear Posture Review (NPR) is not an operational plan, but rather is a policy document that outlines the U.S. deterrence posture, of which nuclear weapons are a part, says General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

February

• 20 February 2002: US-Russia Arms Reduction Agreement May Not Be Ready by Summit - A senior U.S. official in Moscow says an agreement between Russia and the United States on reducing nuclear weapons stockpiles may not be ready in time for the May presidential summit.
• 19 February 2002: Presidential Letter to Congress on Nuclear Waste Site Decision - February 15 letter from President Bush to leaders of the House of Representatives and the Senate, explaining his recommendation to proceed with development of a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada.
• 15 February 2002: Yucca Mountain, Nevada: Possible Nuclear Waste Storage Facility - Secretary Spencer Abraham is recommending that all of the country's nuclear waste be stored at a new site deep underground at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, 90 miles from Las Vegas.
• 13 February 2002: Policy Chairman Urges End to Nuclear Subsidies for N. Korea - The chairman of the House Policy Committee released a bipartisan letter to President Bush February 13 urging the president to cancel the previous administration's plans to supply nuclear technology to North Korea.
• 11 February 2002: U.S. Supports Universal Code Against Missile Proliferation - The United States supports efforts to establish a universal code of conduct against missile proliferation, a State Department spokesman said February 11.
• 11 February 2002: Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Igor Ivanov Speaks to US Secretary of State Colin Powell by Telephone - They considered questions relating to the preparations for the official visit of the US President to Russia, scheduled for the first half of 2002. In this connection both sides stressed the importance of working out by the upcoming Russian-US summit a legally binding agreement on a radical reduction of the two countries' strategic offensive arms.
• 8 February 2002: Military Divided On Formal Weapons-Reductions Treaty With US - n Russia, a number of military officials are welcoming the U.S. government's newfound readiness -- signaled in remarks by Secretary of State Colin Powell on 5 February -- to work out a legally binding document on reducing weapons stockpiles. But others say it is still early to speak about a real accord being struck between Russia and the U.S.
• 7 February 2002: Regarding the Publication in the USA of a CIA Report on the Issues of Nonproliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction - A non-classified version of the CIA's report to Congress on the issues of the nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) was published in the United States a few days ago. It is not for the first time that the US intelligence agency addresses this theme, but the "revelations" about Russia contained in this report cause not only extreme bewilderment but also serious concern.
• 6 February 2002: State Department Report, Powell on Iraq - U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell says the Bush administration is examining a full range of options on Iraq, and "it is the most serious assessment of options that one might imagine."
• 5 February 2002: Colin Powell's remarks to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee - U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell says the president has set two major foreign policy objectives that must be met before all else -- win the war on terrorism and protect Americans at home and abroad.
• 4 February 2002: Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said that potential acquisition of weapons of mass destruction by terrorist groups constitutes the chief security threat facing the United States and the world today.
• 4 February 2002: National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice defended the strongly worded warning about North Korea, Iran and Iraq made January 29 by President Bush in his State of the Union address, saying these countries pose a serious threat and "it's time to get serious about it."
• 4 February 2002: The president commented further on the "evil axis" he spoke of in his State of the Union Address, states such as North Korea, Iraq, Iran with weapons of mass destruction. "In order for the world to be peaceful for our children and grandchildren, we've got to prevent nations which develop weapons of mass destruction from mating up with terrorist groups that will threaten the United States and our allies," he said.
• 3 February 2002: Pakistan has denied U.S. allegations that China is helping its longtime ally develop advanced ballistic missiles.
• 1 February 2002: CIA report to congress on the acquisitions of Weapons of Mass Destruction around the world.

January

• 31 January 2002: Remarks by Spencer Abraham on Environmental Management - Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham spoke about DOE nuclear site cleanup, and upgrades through his top-to-bottom review.
• 31 January 2002: Putin: New Arms Control Agreements Should be Legally Binding - Mr. Ivanov told reporters Russia wants a verifiable and transparent strategic offensive arms reduction. The Bush administration has said it prefers an informal agreement.
• 30 January 2002: Abraham Announces Nuclear Nonproliferation Effort with Kazakhstan - Two U.S. companies and Brookhaven National Laboratory will help a former nuclear weapons plant in Kazahkstan, the Ulba Metallurgical Plant, develop the capability to separate low-enriched uranium from uranium concentrates, with the processed uranium then made available as a power source to civilian power reactors around the world, according to a Department of Energy press release.
• 30 January 2002: Russia Accuses US of Impeding Disarmament - Russia's foreign ministry has accused the United States of impeding progress on disarmament, saying Washington should not limit its international diplomatic efforts to combating terrorism.
• 26 January 2002: SEA-BASED MIDCOURSE TEST COMPLETED - The Missile Defense Agency and the Navy conducted a successful flight test in the continuing development of a Sea-Based Midcourse (SMD) Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS) on Friday, January 25. Flight Mission-2 (FM-2) involved the launch of a developmental Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) and kinetic warhead (KW) interceptor from the Aegis Cruiser USS Lake Erie and an Aries target missile launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF) on the island of Kauai, Hawaii.
• 24 January 2002: Bolton Says U.S. Will Not Resume Nuclear Testing - Under Secretary of State John Bolton says the Bush administration has no plans to resume nuclear testing, which was halted by the United States in 1992.
• 24 January 2002: Congressman Edward Markey held a press conference concerning the safety of US nuclear sites.
• 24 January 2002: Sea-Based Midcourse "Fly-By" Missile Test Scheduled - The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and the Navy will conduct a Sea-Based Midcourse (SMD) Flight Mission 2 (FM-2) test on Jan. 25, 2002. The launch window is open from 5 to 9 p.m. EST. The test will involve the launch of a prototype interceptor missile from the Aegis guided missile cruiser USS Lake Erie, and the launch of an Aries target missile from the Pacific Missile Range Facility (PMRF), Kauai, Hawaii. The FM-2 is a controlled developmental test and not operationally representative.
• 24 Januray 2002: Abraham Announces Plan to Dispose of Surplus Plutonium - The U.S. Department of Energy will dispose of 34 metric tons of surplus weapons grade plutonium by turning it into fuel for nuclear reactors.
• 24 January 2002: Bolton Calls for Stronger Curbs on Weapons of Mass Destruction - Under Secretary of State John Bolton called on the 66-nation Conference on Disarmament to approve stricter controls on the spread of weapons of mass destruction because of the threat they pose to international security.
• 16 January 2002: Under Secretary Feith Joint Media Availability with Russian First Deputy Chiefof the General Staff of the Russian Federation Armed Forces, General-Colonel Yuri Nikolayevich Baluyevskiy.
• 16 January 2002: DoD News: Special Breifing on the visit by First Depty Chief of the Russian General Staff General-Colonel Yuriy Nikolayevich Baluyevski.
• 17 January 2002: U.S. and Russian defense officials are setting up a series of working groups to foster cooperation in verifying reductions of nuclear arsenals, in exchanging data on technology, and in joint antiterrorism efforts, Under Secretary of Defense Douglas Feith says.
• 17 January 2002: U.S., Russian Defense Officials Conclude Early Arms Talks - U.S. and Russian defense officials are setting up a series of working groups to foster cooperation in verifying reductions of nuclear arsenals, in exchanging data on technology, and in joint antiterrorism efforts, Under Secretary of Defense Douglas Feith says.
• 17 January 2002: Top U.S. and Russian defense officials have ended two days of talks in Washington on a variety of military issues, including cooperation in combating terrorism and further reductions in nuclear arms.
• 15 January 2002: US, Russia Arms Reduction Talks Start in Washington- Russian defense officials begin nuclear-arms reduction talks in Washington Tuesday. Despite the recent improvement in relations between the two countries there are many issues to be resolved.
• 15 January 2002: Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz on Nuclear Posture Review. "what we're trying to do there is to change the whole way in which we look at deterrence in a way that recognizes that both the political environment and the technological environment make the role of nuclear weapons today, have reduced the role of nuclear weapons." He also stated, "So what we're looking at is a transformation of our deterrent posture from an almost exclusive emphasis on in being offensive nuclear forces to a force that includes defensive as well as offensive, and includes conventional strike capability as well as nuclear strike capability, and includes a much reduced level of nuclear strike capability."
• 12 January 2002: The United States is more likely to be attacked by a weapon of mass destruction from a terrorist group using conventional means such as a truck, ship or airplane than a long-range intercontinental ballistic missile, a newly released national intelligence report says.
• 12 January 2002: Russia: Moscow Expects Treaty On Nuclear Cuts Moscow - Russian Colonel General Yurii Baluevskii says Russia expects a legally binding, formal accord with the United States about deeper nuclear weapons cuts.
• 11 January 2002: New Intelligence Report Alters Missile Threat Projections - Washington -- The United States is more likely to be attacked by a weapon of mass destruction from a terrorist group using conventional means such as a truck, ship or airplane than a long-range intercontinental ballistic missile, a newly released national intelligence report says.
• 10 January 2002: The National Intelligence Council released an unclassified version o the Foreign Missile Devleopements and the Ballistic Missile Threat Through 2015. The NIE describes new missile developments and projectsion of possible and likely ballistic missile threats to the U.S. and U.S. interests abroas.
• 10 January 2002: U.S. Sees Possible Increased Missile Threat From China - A U.S. intelligence report says China could have between 75 and 100 long-range nuclear-armed missiles aimed at the United States by the year 2015, many of them on hard-to-find mobile launchers.
• 10 January 2002: Moscow Blasts US Plans to Stockpile, Not Destroy, Some Warheads - Russia has reacted sharply to U.S. plans to store rather destroy some nuclear warheads as part of a planned 10-year reduction of strategic forces. A statement issued by Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Yakovenko in Moscow Thursday says Russia believes Russian-American agreements on further cuts in nuclear arsenals must be radical, verifiable and irreversible. Mr. Yakovenko adds "that means strategic nuclear weapons must be cut not only on paper."
• 10 January 2002: Abraham to Recommend Use of Nevada Nuclear Waste Site - U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham says he will recommend to President Bush that a site in the state of Nevada called Yucca Mountain should serve as the nation's long-term geological repository for nuclear waste.
• 9 January 2002: Russia: Nuclear Arms Cuts Must Be 'Irreversible' - Russia said today that reductions of nuclear weapons agreed with the United States must be "irreversible," responding to Pentagon comments that some U.S. warheads will not be destroyed but merely put in storage.
• 9 January 2002: US to Keep Nuclear Missiles in Reserve: A published report says the Bush administration has told Congress its new strategic policy calls for many warheads, bombs and intercontinental missiles involved in a planned 10-year reduction of strategic nuclear forces to be kept in reserve.
• 9 January 2002: U.S. Will Rely Less On Strategic Nuclear Weapons, Reduce Arsenal - The United States intends to rely less on strategic nuclear weapons and more on conventional, precision-guided arms and deployment of a missile defense shield in its sharply revised nuclear security posture, a Pentagon official says.
• 9 January 2002 - Press Briefing by Ari Fleischer on nuclear testing:
• 9 January 2002 Bush has not ruled out nuclear testing, but no plans now to do so. "The President has said that we will continue to adhere to the no-testing policy. If that would change in the future, we would never rule out the possible need to test to make certain that the stockpile, particularly as it's reduced, is reliable and safe. So he has not ruled out testing in the future, but there are no plans to do so."

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