The Negotiations on Confidence and Security-Building Measures: The Vienna Agreement and Beyond

Abstract

One of the interesting developments that follows from the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Treaty Organization (WTO) is that “operational arms control” or confidence and security-building measures (CSBMs) will probably increase in importance. This essay traces some of the major accomplishments of the CSBM negotiations throughout its history. Particular emphasis is given to the Vienna Document concluded in November 1990 which marked a reconceptualization of the role of CSBMs in a post Cold War era. The essay also advances some proposals for future consideration at the CSCE review conference in Helsinki in March 1992. While most of the CSBMs discussed below were conceived before the disintegration of the Soviet Union in December 1991 — what is important is that many of the same principles might be applied between newly independent states inside the territory of the former Soviet Union.