Verification and Compliance with the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE)

The Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) was designed to equalize holdings of Treaty limited combat equipment (TLE) in Europe between two groups of States Party that, at the time, equated to NATO and the Warsaw Pact. It also established national maximum levels of holdings of TLE and required all States Party to lower their holdings to those national limits by either destruction or conversion of TLE to non-military uses. It entered into force in July 1992. The Soviet Union also took on additional obligations. One contained legally binding obligations related to equipment of the same categories as treaty-limited equipment (TLE) held by Naval Infantry, Coastal Defense (NI/CD), and Strategic Rocket Forces. The second contained political commitments related to equipment of Treaty-limited types removed from the CFE area of application by the Soviet Union prior to Treaty signature. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist and after the Czechoslovak Federated Republic (CSFR) split into two separate states, the number of States Party rose to its present 30.

In May 1996 an amendment was agreed changing flank limits for Russia and Ukraine. In January 1997 the States Party began negotiations to adapt the Treaty to new political circumstances, including the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union and enlargement of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). A new structure of limitations was agreed, along with a number of proposals for key military flexibilities, enhancement of data and verification provisions, and provisions for the accession of new States Party to the Treaty. An Adapted CFE Treaty was signed at the Istanbul Summit of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in November 1999. At the same time, Russia and Georgia agreed on a Joint Statement which addressed concerns about Russian forces on Georgian territory; Russia made specific commitments regarding withdrawal of its military forces from Moldova; and Russia reiterated then-Prime Minister Putin’s commitment that Russia would reduce its CFE Treaty-limited equipment (TLE) in the flank region to Adapted Treaty levels. NATO Allies have said that they will not move to ratify the Adapted CFE Treaty until all remaining commitments on Georgia and Moldova have been completed.

In spite of some troubling exceptions, most of the provisions of the Treaty have been implemented with success. States Party have reduced more than 52,000 pieces of TLE inside the CFE zone according to Treaty provisions and against national reduction obligations (all confirmed by on-site inspections), and many States Party have further reduced their holdings to levels lower than required. Also, Russia has notified the destruction or conversion of an additional some 15,700 items outside the CFE area of application and completed obligations inherited from the former Soviet Union. Russia met its Istanbul commitment to reduce its CFE equipment in the flank region to Adapted Treaty levels, but has yet to fully meet its commitments in regard to Georgia and Moldova. However, Russia continues to exceed the current Treaty legal flank limits, as well as overall limits for both tanks and artillery in active units. In addition, there are a number of other continuing compliance concerns (some long-standing) involving Russia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, and Ukraine.

Verfication of Compliance

The CFE Treaty is an excellent example of a multilateral arms control regime that has been successful without the establishment of a separate international implementing organization such as the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Instead there is a Joint Consultative Group (JCG) in which all States Party meet for most of the year. All CFE States Party have an interest in compliance, but both verification of, and compliance with CFE are national responsibilities. CFE states exchange extensive detailed data on their forces and provide many notifications of changes in that data. Individual nations lead and conduct highly intrusive short notice inspections to confirm sample elements of this data, and most of these inspections involve multinational teams. In addition, the 22 NATO CFE states fully cooperate in their inspection activities and exchange the results of their inspections in the NATO Verification Coordination Committee (VCC). States Party employ all national means and methods at their disposal, including national intelligence technical means for CFE verification, in addition to data analysis and inspection results. The Treaty on Open Skies gives CFE states another potential means for potential monitoring CFE.

The JCG provides an almost year-round forum for nations to raise compliance concerns. Some compliance concerns have been resolved after they were raised in the JCG, or after violations were detected during on-site inspection. However, a number of concerns about the compliance of five States Party, all of which are former members of the Soviet Union, have persisted.

For further information please visit:
http://www.state.gov/t/
00 1 (202) 647-5315