Russia would gain no significant military advantage by trying to surreptitiously maintain a larger strategic nuclear arsenal than allowed under the New START arms control regime, Gen. Kevin Chilton, head of US Strategic Command, told the Senate Armed Services Committee, July 20, 2010. Chilton said any "significant cheating" attempts by the Russians would be detectable under the treaty's intrusive inspection and verification protocols. Even if Russia did succeed to some extent, he said the US ability to deter Russia "with an assured response" would remain. Here, Chilton (r) speaks with a security forces airman at Ellsworth AFB, S.D., during Global Thunder 2009, a nuclear command and control exercise, June 29, 2009.
Air Force photo by TSgt. Lee A. Osberry Jr.
