Reciprocal Unilateral Measures. “Reciprocal unilateral measures” is not my favorite phrase, despite my rather considerable affection for some of the people who have made use of it. There is nothing wrong with the concept, mind you, but RUMs? Ugh. The term is back in our discourse, thanks to the Secretary of State’s International Security Advisory Board (ISAB), which has prepared an an otherwise sensible draft report on Options for Implementing Additional Nuclear Force Reductions. My complaint with RUMs is equal parts pedantic, political and substantive. SInce this is just a draft report, consider this an open letter to the ISAB to drop a term that mars an otherwise elegant idea. First, the pedantry. [Reciprocal] Of the nature of, or relating to, a return (in kind); made, given, etc., in response; answering, corresponding.
The definition of unilateral is “without reciprocal obligation” — at best, “reciprocal unilateral” is nonsense. Second, the politics of “reciprocal unilateral measures” are terrible. Duma sets its own understandings of New START - Blog - Russian strategic nuclear forces. The first draft of the New START ratification law that emerged from the Duma committees was very brief - the entire document included one paragraph: Ratify the Treaty between the Russian Federation and the United States on measures for further reduction and limitation of strategic offensive arms, signed in Prague on April 8, 2010.
That was it - 27 words (in Russian). But that, of course, was before the Duma had a chance to listen to the discussion in the U.S. Senate or to read the Senate resolution of ratification. Even though the Senate did not change the text of the treaty, the ratification resolution includes some understanding and conditions that Russia is concerned could affect the meaning of some of the treaty provisions. To counter that, Russia drafted its own list of understandings, which were included into the treaty during the so-called second reading of the ratification law.
Withdrawal conditions are specified in the Article 4 of the law. 2. A new START (2010-2011) Russian strategic nuclear forces.