We are rededicating ourselves to aims that are both essential and enduring: To ensure that the atom's power will be unleashed solely for purposes of peace. To keep deadly arms out of dangerous hands. To bring closer the day when nations are respected not for the weapons they have, but for the promises they keep -- to other countries, and their own people.
	Secretary of State Madeleine Albright        April 1, 1999

This issue of U.S. Foreign Policy Agenda examines the U.S. response to the challenge posed by the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and their missile delivery systems. Key U.S. officials outline U.S. initiatives for addressing and preventing proliferation; explore the threats posed by nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons; and review U.S. policy on conventional arms issues including landmines, small arms, and levels of military equipment and manpower in Europe. A leading scholar looks at the U.S. experience with WMD, and a congressional expert outlines the status of arms control legislation in the U.S. Congress. A U.S. senator examines the dismantlement of WMD in the former Soviet Union, while Defense Department and National Security Council officials focus on arms proliferation in India, Pakistan, Iraq, and Iran.

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