The Age of Arms Control

There was a time when the nuclear powers did more than posture. During the era of arms control, the White House, Kremlin, and State Department built frameworks to slow the arms race and reduce the chance of catastrophe. The process was imperfect and often fragile. In this episode, Jane Perlez interviews New START Treaty chief negotiator Rose Gottemoeller. Gottemoeller takes us behind the scenes to dissect how a nuclear treaty comes together: the negotiations, the personalities, the yelling from the White House, and the U.S.-Russian nuclear facility ground inspections spelled out in painstaking detail. “Both sides really try to make sure that the other side doesn't see what they're not supposed to see,” Gottemoeller tells us. Now, as the last nuclear treaties expire, we must ask: is there still a path forward on arms control? Reading Recommendations: Negotiating the New START Treaty by Rose Gottemoeller: The American negotiator for the last arms control treaty tells her story. Insider, juicy stuff. Detente and Confrontation by Raymond Garthoff: Published in 1985, highly regarded account of the and fall of detente in the 1970s and early 80s. Face-Off is produced and reported by Jane Perlez. Our production team is Nina Porzucki, Louise Morris, and Frank Zhou. Sound design and mixing by John Myers and Rowhome Productions. This project is made possible by the Belfer Center at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Managing the Atom Project. Our special guest is Professor Matthew Bunn, Faculty Chair of the Managing the Atom Project (@matthew-bunn.bsky.social). Face Off is produced in partnership with Rowhome Productions. Rowhome's Creative Director is Alex Lewis. John Myers is Rowhome's Executive Producer. Episode Art Image Credit: AP Photo/JH. Image Caption: A young donor receives a button from Dr. Louise Reiss after giving his baby teeth to the strontium research project in St. Louis, Missouri on Jan. 15, 1962. The button announces: “I Gave My Tooth to Science.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices