The US is willing to engage in multilateral arms control efforts with the UK, France, Russia and China, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Friday.
“We have stated our willingness to engage in bilateral arms control discussions with Russia and with China, without preconditions,” Sullivan told the annual meeting of the Arms Control Association, adding that Washington is eager to “compartmentalize” the atomic issue from other relations with Moscow and Beijing.
However, the US also seeks to engage the “P5” – the nuclear-armed permanent members of the UN Security Council – in multilateral arrangements. For example, Sullivan said, “formalizing a missile launch notification regime across the P5 is a straightforward measure that is simply common sense.”
Sullivan called this “a small step that would help reduce the risk of misperception and miscalculation in times of crisis,” but could also build momentum towards further measures, such as “establishing crisis communications channels among the P5 capitals,” and committing to transparency in nuclear matters, among other things.