Foreign Relations of the United States, 1981–1988, Volume XI, START I

154. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Poindexter) to President Reagan¹

Washington, September 13, 1986

SUBJECT

• START and INF Instructions

Issue

To approve instructions for the sixth round of START and INF negotiations in Geneva.

Background

The Nuclear and Space Talks resume in Geneva on September 18. This will be the first opportunity to formally elaborate on the proposals set forth in your July 25th letter to General Secretary Gorbachev.

Discussion

Negotiating instructions for START (Tab A) and INF (Tab B)² have been prepared by the normal interagency process. I have attached a summary sheet for you to record your approval on each set of instructions. The START instructions are agreed to by all agencies. A substantive disagreement exists with respect to the INF instructions; this disagreement and my recommendation are noted on the attached summary sheet.

In addition to START and INF, instructions are also under preparation for the Defense and Space negotiations. Since approved INF instructions are needed to permit routine pre-round NATO consultations, we request you approve these two sets of instructions now. We will document your approval of all instructions with a single NSDD to be forwarded when we forward the Defense and Space instructions.

Recommendation

OK	No
		That you approve the proposed START and INF negotiating instructions.3

Attachment

Paper Prepared in the National Security Council⁴

Washington, undated

START Instuctions—Round VI

Background

Our most recent START proposal is a fifty percent reduction, as agreed to by you and General Secretary Gorbachev at last November’s summit. In your July letter to Gorbachev, you expressed willingness to consider initial reductions of a less sweeping nature as an interim measure.

Discussion

The attached START instructions are agreed to by all agencies. They authorize a new proposal with the following key features:

—A ceiling of 1600 strategic nuclear deliver vehicles (SNDVs) (ballistic missiles plus heavy bombers)

—A limit of 350 heavy bombers

—7500 total RVs plus ALCMs, with sublimits of:

—5500 ballistic missile RVs

—3300 ICBM RVs

—Mobile ICBMs banned

—A new ICBM RV sublimit of 1650 RVs on ICBMs other than silo-based medium or light ICBMs which carry less than 6 RVs. This would capture the systems of most concern to us: heavy ICBMs, highly-MIRVd ICBMs, and, should they be permitted by future negotiating movement, mobile ICBMs.

—50% throw-weight reduction

—Reductions to take place over 5 years

—Sea-launched cruise missiles not included, although we would be willing to consider a side agreement if verification problems can be solved.

Our existing 50 percent reduction proposal remains on the table. To ensure consistency between old and new proposals, the START instructions also include modification of our 50 percent reduction proposal by the addition of:

—An SNDV ceiling of 1600

—Limits of 6000 ballistic missile RVs and ALCMs, 4500 ballistic missile RVs and 3000 ICBM RVs.

—A new sub-limit of 1500 RVs on ICBMs other than silo-based medium or light ICBMs which carry less than 6 RVs.

Finally, the instructions note the importance of agreeing on effective verification procedures and explain why the Soviet proposal of June 11, 1986 is unacceptable.

Recommendation

OK	No
		That you approve the proposed START negotiating instructions.5

1. Source: National Security Council, National Security Council Institutional Files, Box SR 093, NSDD 240. Secret. Sent for action. Prepared by Brooks. Copied to Bush.
2. Attached but not printed are an undated NSC paper, “INF Instructions—Round VI,” and a draft telegram.
3. Reagan initialed his approval.
4. Secret. Prepared by Brooks. Attached but not printed is a draft telegram transmitting the instructions to the START negotiating group. Poindexter wrote at the top of the draft, “Mr. President, you do not have to read this draft cable. John. Next, go to Tab B.” The Department transmitted overall guidance for Round VI in telegram 291634 to NST Geneva, September 17 (Department of State, Central Foreign Policy File, D860704–0990)
5. Reagan initialed his approval.