• Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Global logoCarnegie lettermark logo
DemocracyIran
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [],
  "type": "pressRelease",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "ctw",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "NPP",
  "programs": [
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "Russia",
    "Western Europe"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ]
}
REQUIRED IMAGE

REQUIRED IMAGE

Press Release

NATO best served by realistic nuclear policy review

With widening calls to move toward a world free of nuclear weapons, NATO’s nuclear policy will be high on the agenda during the Alliance’s November summit in Lisbon.

Link Copied
Published on Oct 27, 2010
Program mobile hero image

Program

Nuclear Policy

The Nuclear Policy Program aims to reduce the risk of nuclear war. Our experts diagnose acute risks stemming from technical and geopolitical developments, generate pragmatic solutions, and use our global network to advance risk-reduction policies. Our work covers deterrence, disarmament, arms control, nonproliferation, and nuclear energy.

Learn More

WASHINGTON—With widening calls to move toward a world free of nuclear weapons, NATO’s nuclear policy will be high on the agenda during the Alliance’s November summit in Lisbon. In a new paper, Detlef Waechter writes that NATO members should endorse the approach outlined by Secretary of State Clinton in April calling for NATO to retain its nuclear capability but begin an internal process of rethinking its nuclear posture. This modest but realistic course signals a commitment to defending member states while also demonstrating progress on arms control and disarmament.

Key Policy Recommendations:

  • Conduct a nuclear review. The short new NATO Strategic Concept is unlikely to give military planners the appropriate guidance for effectively implementing NATO’s nuclear policy. Its leaders should therefore task the NATO Council to conduct a review to be endorsed at the next summit meeting.
  • Talk with Russia. Redeploying or eliminating NATO weapons should not be a precondition for negotiating with Russia, but an end result. Launching a dialogue on transparency, reductions, and redeployment needs to be the priority for the NATO–Russia Council meeting that will be attended by President Medvedev in Lisbon.
  • Adopt a multi-track approach. Given Russia’s perception of its military inferiority, insulated talks solely on tactical nuclear weapons will ultimately fail. A multi-track approach combining tactical nuclear weapons, stockpiled U.S. strategic weapons, conventional arms control, and missile defense could help the Alliance reach its goal of a nuclear-weapon-free Europe. These negotiations cannot be formally linked but are convergent.

Achieving a Europe free of nuclear weapons "requires considerable will to compromise on the part of the United States, which owns the tactical nuclear weapons in Europe as well as the strategic weapons systems," Waechter writes. "But the result—a European continent free of nuclear weapons, a NATO reconciled with Russia, and an Alliance free to tackle emerging security threats—would certainly make the effort worthwhile."

###

NOTES

Click here to read the policy outlook online

Detlef Waechter is a German diplomat and a visiting fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He served on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s foreign and security policy team in the Federal Chancellery from 2007–2010, and from 2005 to 2007 served in the German Permanent Representation at NATO in Brussels.

The Carnegie Nuclear Policy Program is an internationally acclaimed source of expertise and policy thinking on nuclear industry, nonproliferation, security, and disarmament. Its multinational staff stays at the forefront of nuclear policy issues in the United States, Russia, China, Northeast Asia, South Asia, and the Middle East.

Press Contact: Kendra Galante, 202-939-2233, pressoffice@ceip.org

Nuclear PolicyRussiaWestern Europe

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

  • Commentary
    Strategic Europe
    Is France Shifting Rightward?

    The far right failed to win big in France’s municipal elections. But that’s not good news for the country’s left wing, which remained disunited while the broader right consolidated its momentum ahead of the 2027 presidential race.

      Catherine Fieschi

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    What the Russian Energy Sector Stands to Gain From War in the Middle East

    The future trajectory of the U.S.-Iran war remains uncertain, but its impact on global energy trade flows and ties will be far-reaching. Moscow is likely to become a key beneficiary of these changes; the crisis in the Gulf also strengthens Russia’s hand in its relationships with China and India, where advantages might prove more durable.

      • Sergey Vakulenko

      Sergey Vakulenko

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    Beyond Oil: Hormuz Closure Puts Russia in the Lead in the Fertilizer Market

    The Kremlin expects to not only profit from rising fertilizer prices but also exact revenge for the collapse of the 2023 grain deal.

      Alexandra Prokopenko

  • Commentary
    Carnegie Politika
    “Mr. Nobody Against Putin”: A Deep Dive Into Russian Propaganda

    Talankin and Borenstein’s documentary is a unique inside look at a regime that threatens the world and has killed thousands of people in its neighboring country. And many critics and general viewers alike draw parallels between the Putin regime and their own governments.

      Ekaterina Barabash

  • Paper
    A Tight Spot: Challenges Facing the Russian Oil Sector Through 2035

    Russian oil production is remarkably resilient to significant price changes, but significant political headwinds may lead to a drop regardless of economics.

      • Sergey Vakulenko

      Sergey Vakulenko

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie global logo, stacked
1779 Massachusetts Avenue NWWashington, DC, 20036-2103Phone: 202 483 7600Fax: 202 483 1840
  • Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
  • Donate
  • Programs
  • Events
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Contact
  • Annual Reports
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Government Resources
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.