ABM Treaty
About the ABM Treaty
Limited antiballistic missile defenses to two sites, later one, each, freezing the mutual vulnerability logic, MAD, that kept deterrence stable. If neither could defend, neither would strike first. US withdrawal 2002 under Bush, over North Korea and Iran missile threats, freed missile defense deployment, Russia then withdrew from START II in response. The treaty logic, offense stability requires limited defense, remains debated in hypersonic and space sensor eras.
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