Glossary: Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START)
DEFINITION:
Name of two treaties. START I, signed in July 1991 by the Soviet Union and the United States, significantly reduced limits for the two parties’ intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and their associated launchers and warheads; submarine-launched ballistic missile launchers and warheads; and heavy bombers and their armaments, including long-range nuclear air-launched cruise missiles. START II, signed in January 1993 by Russia and the United States but still unratified by Russia in mid-1997, further reduced strategic offensive arms of both sides by eliminating all ICBMs with multiple-warhead independently targeted reentry vehicles (MIRVs) and reducing the overall total of warheads for each side to between 3,000 and 3,500. In 1997 an important part of Russia’s debate over future military and foreign policy.