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LOU: JOINING US TONIGHT IS
PRESIDENTIAL ENVOY FOR ARMS
CONTROL, AMBASSADOR MARSHALL
BILLINGSLEY.
AMBASSADOR, IT IS GREAT TO HAVE
YOU WITH US, AND THESE ARE
PERILOUS TIMES, AND YOUR EFFORTS
AND THOSE OF OTHERS IN THE
ADMINISTRATION THE COME TO SOME
SORT OF AN AGREEMENT, A
LUMBARRATION OF PARTICULARLY --
LIMITATION OF PARTICULARLY
NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND DELIVERY
SYSTEMS AMONG THE UNITED STATES,
CHINA AND RUSSIA ARE CRITICALLY
IMPORTANT.
I WANT TO BEGIN BY ASKING YOU
HOW CONFIDENT YOU ARE RIGHT NOW
OF WHAT CAN BE ACHIEVED.
>> WELL, IT’S GREAT TO BE WITH
YOU, LOU, AND THANKS FOR GIVING
ME A CHANCE TO TALK WITH YOU
ABOUT THE VISION THAT PRESIDENT
TRUMP HAS LAID OUT FOR THE
FUTURE OF NUCLEAR ARMS CONTROL.
YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE KEY POINTS
THAT I TOOK FROM YOUR
CONVERSATION JUST NOW WITH RIC
GRENELL IS THE IMPORTANCE OF
TRANSPARENCY, AND WE NEED TO BE
CLEAR THAT THE SAME KIND OF
SECRETIVE BEHAVIOR THAT THE
CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY ADOPTED
WHEN IT CAME TO THE CORONAVIRUS
IS THE KIND OF STONEWALLING
THEY’RE APPLYING TO THEIR
NUCLEAR BUILDUP.
THAT’S WHY THE PRESIDENT HAS
CALLED THEM OUT, HE’S MADE CLEAR
THAT THEY ARE SURGING AND THAT
THE NEXT NUCLEAR ARMS CONTROL
TREATY MUST INCLUDE AND MUST
LIMIT CHINA.
LOU: WELL, AND, AMBASSADOR, I
WANT THE AUDIENCE TO KNOW THAT
YOU HAVE DECLASSIFIED VIDEO FOR
US TO SHOW WHAT WAS HAPPENING IN
THE ARMS PARADE IN BEIJING.
AND IF WE COULD, LET’S GO TO,
FIRST, AN IMAGE FROM 2009.
THIS, THIS SHOWS -- WELL, I’M
GOING TO ASK YOU, WHAT DOES,
WHAT DO YOU TAKE FROM THIS AND
THE SIZE OF THE PARADE?
>> YEAH.
WELL, SO, LOU, THE IMAGE THAT
YOU’RE SHOWING YOUR VIEWERS
THERE IS ACTUALLY FROM A
CLASSIFIED BRIEFING THAT I GAVE
TO THE NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL,
TO NATO, A FEW WEEKS AGO.
AND WITH FELT IT WAS IMPORTANT,
AGAIN, ON THIS THEME OF
TRANSPARENCY, THAT THE AMERICAN
PEOPLE AND, FRANKLY, THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY KNOW
WHAT’S GOING ON.
SO ON TOP THERE YOU CAN SEE IN
THE PARADE, THE CHINESE HAVE ONE
BIG PARADE EVERY TEN YEARS OR SO
WHERE THEY SHOW OFF THEIR
NUCLEAR WEAPONS.
IN 2009 YOU CAN SEE THAT THE
LENGTH OF THAT PARADE STRETCHED
ABOUT HALF A KILOMETER.
TEN YEARS LATER THAT PARADE
STRETCHED TEN TIMES AS LONG.
SO THAT’S WHAT THEY’VE DONE JUST
IN THE SPACE OF TEN YEARS.
CAN YOU IMAGINE WHAT IT’S GOING
TO BE LIKE TEN YEARS FROM NOW
WHEN THEY CONTINUE BILLING ALL
OF THESE DIFFERENT RANGES AND
TYPES OF THESE NUCLEAR-CAPABLE
MISSILES?
IT’S VERY, VERY CONCERNING, AND
THE AMERICAN PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW
THAT THE PRESIDENT IS LOOKING
OUT FOR THEM AND HE’S GOING
PROTECT US THROUGH A VARIAN FEW
OF MECHANISMS, BOTH IMPROVING
OUR NUCLEAR DETERRENT, BRINGING
ON LINE NEW CAPABILITIES THAT NO
OTHER NATION HAS, BUT ALSO IN
DRIVING ARMS CONTROL TO TRY TO
LIMIT AND AVOID AN UNNECESSARY
AND COSTLY THREE-WAY NUCLEAR A
ARMS RACE.
LOU: WELL, I’D LIKE, AMBASSADOR,
FOR YOU TO COME BACK AND SPEND
SOME MORE TIME WITH US.
WE ARE, ACTUALLY, CONSTRAINED BY
TIME TONIGHT.
BUT I WANT TO GET A SENSE FROM
YOU, AGAIN, AS TO YOUR HOPES,
YOUR OPTIMISM ABOUT DOING
SOMETHING WITH EITHER RUSSIA
BILATERALLY OR EVEN IF THAT’S IN
THE CARDS OR WITH CHINA
BILATERALLY.
>> SO THAT’S A GREAT QUESTION.
THE BOTTOM LINE IS THE BALL IS
NOW IN RUSSIA’S COURT.
THE PRESIDENT HAS HAD THE
NECESSARY CONVERSATIONS WITH
PRESIDENT PUTIN, AND WE VIEW
THAT THEY HAVE, THEY HAVE
SKETCHED OUT THE WITHDRAW AHEAD.
THE WAY AHEAD.
AND THAT WE’VE MADE E A GOOD
OFFER TO THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION,
AND WE HOPE THEY’LL TAKE US UP
ON IT.
WHAT WE WANT TO DO HERE IS THREE
THINGS.
WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE
NEXT AGREEMENT WE NEGOTIATE --
AND WE’LL START WITH THE
RUSSIANS FIRST, AND WE’LL
INCLUDE THE CHINESE IN DUE
COURSE, BUT IT’S GOT TO COVER
ALL NUCLEAR WEAPONS.
WE CAN’T HAVE THE RUSSIANS
BUILDING ALL OF THESE TACTICAL
NUCLEAR WEAPONS OUTSIDE OF ANY
TREATY FOCUSED ON NATO AND, OF
COURSE, CHINA’S NOT INVOLVED IN
ANY OF THESE ARMS CONTROL
AGREEMENTS.
THAT’S THING NUMBER TWO.
THE ARCHITECTURE HAS TO INCLUDE
CHINA.
AND NUMBER THREE, WE’VE GOT TO
FIX THE DANGEROUS DEFICIENCIES
CONTAINED IN THE NEW STAR TREATY
IN TERMS OF VERIFICATION AND
TRANSPARENCY MEASURES.
WE’RE HOPEFUL THAT MOSCOW WILL
TAKE US UP ON IT.
LOU: WELL, AMBASSADOR, WE
APPRECIATE YOU BEING WITH US IN
A VERY INSTRUCTIVE DISCUSSION.
WE APPRECIATE IT.