A recent Congressional Research Service report states that Russia is a "nuclear superpower" intent on "maintaining rough parity with the United States." In fact, Russians no longer view their state as a superpower and see parity as a relic of the past. The Russian government's recently issued National Security Concept (December 1997) acknowledges a worldview that much of the Russian public has believed for some time, namely that Russia is no longer a superpower, but at best a great power with regional and local interests. The document also underscores another well known facet of Russian life: the economy is the fulcrum on which all other improvements in the country depend, especially national security. As a result of Russia's decline in the international arena and its dire economic problems, Russia no longer seeks strategic parity with the US, but rather strategic stability. The difference is profound and has implications for the US defense posture, particularly for prospective START III negotiations. […]
Memo #:
28
Series:
1
PDF:
PDF URL:
http://www.gwu.edu/~ieresgwu/assets/docs/ponars/pm_0028.pdf
