Implementing U.S. Arms Control Agreements

A View from the Trenches

by CGSC Foundation Inc. Edited by Gilbert A. Bernabe with Peter W. Pandolfi and Herbert L. Cork

Implementing U.S. Arms Control Agreements
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Implementing U.S. Arms Control Agreements

A View from the Trenches

by CGSC Foundation Inc. Edited by Gilbert A. Bernabe with Peter W. Pandolfi and Herbert L. Cork

Published Jun 26, 2025
320 Pages
6 x 9 Black & White Paperback and 6 x 9 Black & White Dust-Jacketed Hardback
Genre: POLITICAL SCIENCE / International Relations / Arms Control


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Book Details

OSIA treaty inspectors deployed around the world from the deserts of the Middle East to the frozen tundra of Siberia to ensure that weapons and their components were destroyed.

Verification of arms control agreements has become a major topic in international relations. Although violations of such agreements properly command significant attention at the highest levels, the successful implementation of these often complex and intrusive verification regimes frequently goes unnoticed. This book documents the story of one of the key organizations in this historic struggle to constrain and, where possible, eliminate the weapons that continue to plague the human race and the world environment—the United States (U.S.) Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) and its legacy organization, the U.S. Department of Defense On-Site Inspection Agency (OSIA). This story is told by some of the world’s leading experts on the subject—men and women who labored on the front lines of the on-site inspections (OSI) and related activities which formed a key component of the verification of a broad array of modern arms control agreements. Recounted in the book are the real-world experiences for students and practitioners of the arms control profession to reflect upon. This collection of arms control missions provides many firsts:

• They are a record of the first actual arms control on-site inspections under the INF Treaty and, soon after, START.

• They document the first travels and visits to Soviet and Russian INF and START missile sites.

• They provide the first American experiences and visits to many remote Soviet and Russian military communities; often being the first time many Soviet/Russian citizens saw any Americans.

• They record, for the Soviet and Russian inspectors, their reactions and wonder at U.S. treaty sites.

U.S. INF and START inspection sites gave these inspectors the opportunity to visit U.S. military sites, to experience U.S. capitalist stores rich in consumer goods, and to eat in restaurants stocked with plenty of delicious food. • They also provide insight to the reaction of U.S. military facilities to the presence of Soviet/Russian inspectors accessing protected areas of the sites.

 

About the Author

CGSC Foundation Inc. Edited by Gilbert A. Bernabe with Peter W. Pandolfi and Herbert L. Cork

Gilbert A. Bernabe, Ph.D. (Lt. Colonel, U.S. Army, retired) is a former treaty planner/analyst and inspector for the On-Site Inspection Agency (OSIA) and Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA). He spent twenty-six years in the U.S. Army; and seventeen years serving as a Civil Servant for the On-Site Inspection and the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Dr. Bernabe supported the INF and START Treaties as a planner and treaty analyst and participated on inspection and escort missions. He also served with the United Nations Special Commission on Iraq (UNSCOM) and participated in UNSCOM missile inspections in Iraq. Herbert L. Cork (Lt. Colonel, U.S. Air Force, retired) served in the U.S. Air Force for nearly twenty-four years. He began his career as an ICBM operations officer in South Dakota, then served in two command and control positions in Germany before his assignment to OSIA in 1996. His diverse military career also included joint operations duty at Headquarters U.S. European Command while deployed. Peter W. Pandolfi, Ph.D. (Major, U.S. Air Force retired) served as a U.S. Air Force officer for twenty years as an ICBM Operations Officer. He conducted three INF inspections in the Soviet Union, was Deputy Team Leader for all START Exhibition Inspections in the U.S., conducted several mock inspections under START, and served as Deputy Escort Team Leader on one START inspection. A fascinating read.A collection of the compelling stories of the dedicated and professional men and women from all the military services and many government agencies that made the verification regimes of the many treaties of the late 20th century work. Brigadier General Thomas Kuenning, U.S. Air Force (Retired) Former Director, On-Site Inspection Agency – July 1995 – September 1997 This book documents the story of one of the key organizations in this historic struggle to constrain and, where possible, eliminate the weapons that continue to plague the human race and the world environment. Dr. Edward Ifft Deputy Director (External Affairs) of the On-Site inspection Agency; Senior State Department Representative to the START I and CTBT Negotiations and the Standing Consultative Commission (ABM Treaty). This book tells the little-known story of the creation and operation of the On-site Inspection Agency… Here, for the first time, are the observations and personal stories of service and sacrifice to ensure peace and security for the U.S. Colonel Robert R. Ulin U.S. Army (Retired) Founder and Director, The Arthur D. Simons Center for Ethical Leadership & Interagency Cooperation

Also by CGSC Foundation Inc. Edited by Gilbert A. Bernabe with Peter W. Pandolfi and Herbert L. Cork

The End of the Cold War and its Aftermath
The Impossible Mission
Implementing U.S. Arms Control Agreements (eBook Edition)