ABM Treaty

Cultural  

1. The popular name for part of the 1972 Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT) between the United States and the former Soviet Union; it restricts the number and locations of antiballistic missiles (ABM) that each nation can deploy. President George W. Bush has announced his intention to abandon the treaty so that the United States can deploy an ABM system, parts of which would be space-based. (See Star Wars.)

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Example Sentences

The United States backed out of the ABM treaty in 2002.

From Nature

When George W. Bush ran for president in 2000, he vowed to turn it into a reality, and soon after he won the election, he formally abrogated the ABM Treaty to make it so.

From Slate

The Defense Department has been spending about $10 billion a year on missile defense since President George W. Bush abrogated the ABM Treaty in 2002.

From Slate

In March during his State of the Nation address, Mr. Putin announced Russia was developing a range of “invincible” advanced nuclear weapons, including a hypersonic missile, in response to what he called Washington’s withdrawal from the long-standing ABM Treaty between the U.S. and Russia.

From Washington Times

Missile defenses can also increase nuclear risks by blocking arms control and providing incentives for Russia and China to build more and different kinds of weapons; preventing this dynamic was a core reason for the ABM Treaty’s limits.

From Scientific American