The Russian Federation and the CFE Treaty: Self-defense without Use of Force

Abstract

This article is devoted to the unfortunate situation around the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (the CFE Treaty). This Treaty adopted by two blocks (NATO and Warsaw Pact countries) in 1990 was assigned to decrease the quantity of military forces in Europe so that neither party would have an advantage over the other.
But the international conditions have changed dramatically: the USSR collapsed and the NATO recruited new members, including those who used to be parties to the Warsaw Pact. The parity was consequently broken. So in 1999 in Istanbul there was signed the Agreement on Adaptation of the CFE Treaty (the so called “adopted CFE”). The RF and a few CIS countries have ratified this Agreement, in contrast to the NATO countries, who refuse ratification until Russia withdraws its troops from Georgia and Moldova.
So RF convened an emergency conference of the countries-parties to the CFE Treaty. After the participants failed to reach an agreement Russian president took the decision to suspend the Treaty until the NATO countries ratify the Agreement on adaptation (the moratorium entered into force on December, 12, 2007). This decision can not be based on provisions of the Treaty itself as it provides only for denunciation (not suspension). But Russian government can refer to the right of self-defense without use of force, because this situation (taking into account the NATO expansion and the plans to station the ABM in Europe) threatens territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Russian Federation.