David A. Koplow

The Arms Control and Disarmament Act (P.L. 87-297, 75 Stat. 631) was landmark legislation designed to entrench arms control as a key component of United States national security policy during and after the Cold War. With this act, Congress achieved three main tasks: (1) it set ambitious goals and purposes for coordinating disarmament with other defense strategies; (2) it created the U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (ACDA), a body that would make the country's commitment to arms control a part of its governing institutions; and (3) it established standards and procedures for integrating all aspects of security policy.

HISTORY OF THE ARMS CONTROL ISSUE

Arms control emerged as a highly...