Agence France-Presse,
Vienna: The Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) treaty, which is being reviewed this week in Vienna at Russia's request, is one of the key post-Cold War security accords in Europe. The CFE was signed on November 19, 1990 in Paris by the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and the Warsaw Pact — two opposing blocs during the Cold War — and was modified in 1999 to adapt it to the European security environment following the fall of the Soviet Union.
The initial aim was to eliminate the capacity of either side to launch a surprise attack or large-scale military offensive.
The treaty, which entered into force in 1992, states that no country may station forces on the territory of another treaty member without the latter's permission.
NATO says the CFE treaty “continues to serve as the cornerstone of security and stability in Europe” by reducing tensions from arms buildups and increasing confidence-building, transparency and cooperation between members states.
But the 1999 amendment to the treaty has yet to enter into effect due to a dispute between NATO and Russia.
NATO countries refuse to ratify the revised version because of the continuing presence of Russian troops in Georgia and Moldova.
Russia, which ratified the adapted treaty in 2004, is meanwhile threatening to suspend its application of the CFE due to what it sees as a US military buildup near its borders.
Russia has been infuriated by US plans for a missile defence shield in Poland and the Czech Republic and military bases in Romania and Bulgaria.
The 1990 CFE treaty limits the use of five categories of heavy weaponry in a zone running from the Atlantic to the Ural mountains.
Since its entry into force, 60,000 tanks, military transport vehicles, planes, helicopters and artillery have been destroyed or dismantled, and the number of troops stationed over the entire territory covered by the CFE has been reduced from 5.7 million to less than three million.
There is a strict inspection and transparency regime in the treaty.
