After the INF: Keeping arms control intact is tough, dangerous work

President Trump’s announcement that the United States will pull out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty bodes ill for the future of arms control. Returning to constraints is possible, but as nuclear competition is unfettered, the path back to arms control will likely involve serious crises that remind countries of nuclear dangers.

It takes a lot of political work to enter such an agreement, and there are a lot of potential consequences for leaving it. Among those consequences could be serious crises that remind countries of the dangers of nuclear competition.