START II

START II (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) was a <a href="/facts/Bilateral_treaty/qkGApHHM">bilateral treaty</a> between the <a href="/facts/United_States/P0sCdLe5">United States</a> and <a href="/facts/Russia/jfkCwyxn">Russia</a> on the Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. It was signed by <a href="/facts/US_President/oMsfmLb1">US President</a> <a href="/facts/George_H._W._Bush/Xk5UxRqp">George H. W. Bush</a> and <a href="/facts/Russian_President/B51rFJbT">Russian President</a> <a href="/facts/Boris_Yeltsin/I8Ktypjs">Boris Yeltsin</a> on 3 January 1993, banning the use of <a href="/facts/Multiple_independently_targetable_re-entry_vehicle/cmzWwXxy">multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles</a> (MIRVs) on <a href="/facts/Intercontinental_ballistic_missile/0vKnj2Y7">intercontinental ballistic missiles</a> (ICBMs). Hence, it is often cited as the De-MIRV-ing Agreement.
It was ratified by the <a href="/facts/US_Senate/VyzXHE01">US Senate</a> on 26 January 1996 with a vote of 87–4. Russia ratified START II on 14 April 2000, making it conditional on preserving the <a href="/facts/ABM_Treaty/zVdq5BYF">ABM Treaty</a>. When the US withdrew from the ABM Treaty on 13 June 2002, Russia withdrew from START II one day later. Thus, START II never entered into effect.
Instead, <a href="/facts/SORT/cVDT9R9m">SORT</a> came into effect, which reduced the strategic warheads count per country to 1,700–2,200.

START II open-in-new

START II