26th May 1972: The United States and the Soviet Union sign the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty at the Moscow Summit

**Scott Allsop** (0:00)
On the 26th of May 1972, the United States and the Soviet Union signed the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. Welcome to HistoryPod.
The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty was intended to limit the development and deployment of missile defense systems during the Cold War. The 1950s and 60s had seen an escalation of nuclear weapons development, leading both superpowers to accumulate large arsenals of intercontinental ballistic missiles. While this created a balance based on mutual deterrence, advances in anti-ballistic missile technology raised the possibility that one side might develop defensive systems capable of intercepting incoming missiles. This prospect was viewed as destabilizing, as it could encourage further offensive buildup or create incentives for a first strike. By the late 1960s, both governments had begun negotiations aimed at limiting these systems as part of the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks, or SALT.
Signed in Moscow during a summit between Richard Nixon and Leonard Brezhnev, the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty saw each country agree to restrict the development of anti-ballistic missile systems, as well as limit the number of interceptor missiles and associated radar installations. The agreement also included mechanisms for verification, such as satellite observation. The signing of the treaty took place alongside other agreements reached during the Moscow summit, reflecting a period of reduced tension often described as detente. While it did not reduce the number of offensive nuclear weapons directly, it stabilized the nuclear balance during the Cold War and established a precedent for arms control agreements. Although the treaty was later affected by changing strategic priorities, it marked a point at which both nations recognized the importance of restraint in managing nuclear rivalry.