{"slug":"trump-first-term-open-skies-treaty-withdrawal","title":"Open Skies Treaty Withdrawal: Unilateral Exit from 35-Nation Arms Control Agreement","date":"2020-05-21","lastUpdated":"2020-11-22","description":"On May 21, 2020, the Trump administration announced the United States would withdraw from the Treaty on Open Skies, a 35-nation arms control agreement that allows member states to conduct unarmed surveillance flights over each other's territory to build transparency and verify treaty compliance. The treaty, signed in 1992 and in force since 2002, had been a key instrument of post-Cold War transparency between NATO and Russia. Trump cited alleged Russian violations as the reason for withdrawal; European allies argued the correct response was to remain in the treaty and pressure Russia on compliance rather than exit. The U.S. formally withdrew on November 22, 2020.","summary":"The Open Skies Treaty allows its 35 signatories — including the United States, Russia, and most NATO and former Warsaw Pact nations — to conduct scheduled unarmed reconnaissance flights over each other's territory. The flights collect imagery that member states share, building collective military transparency. Trump administration officials argued Russia had violated the treaty by restricting U.S. flight paths over certain territories. European allies agreed Russia had compliance issues but argued the U.S. should address them within the treaty framework rather than withdraw, and warned that U.S. withdrawal would give Russia an excuse to exit entirely. Russia did subsequently withdraw from the treaty in January 2021, after Trump's withdrawal had set the precedent. The Biden administration reviewed but did not rejoin the treaty due to concerns about congressional opposition.","category":"foreign-policy","severity":"significant","ongoing":false,"sources":[{"url":"https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/21/us/politics/trump-open-skies-treaty.html","title":"Trump Will Withdraw U.S. From Open Skies Treaty, Citing Russian Violations","publisher":"The New York Times"},{"url":"https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/trump-open-skies-withdrawal-europe-russia/2020/05/21/story.html","title":"European allies urge U.S. to stay in Open Skies Treaty even as Trump announces withdrawal","publisher":"The Washington Post"},{"url":"https://apnews.com/article/trump-open-skies-treaty-withdrawal-russia","title":"U.S. completes withdrawal from Open Skies Treaty","publisher":"The Associated Press"},{"url":"https://www.armscontrol.org/factsheets/openskies","title":"The Open Skies Treaty at a Glance","publisher":"Arms Control Association"}],"draft":false,"status":"published","tags":["arms-control","Open-Skies","first-term","foreign-policy","Russia","NATO","treaties"],"relatedEntries":[],"timeline":[{"date":"1992-03-24","title":"Open Skies Treaty signed","summary":"The Treaty on Open Skies is signed in Helsinki by 23 states, including the United States, Russia, and most NATO and former Warsaw Pact nations. It takes a decade for sufficient ratifications to enter into force."},{"date":"2002-01-01","title":"Treaty enters into force","summary":"The Open Skies Treaty enters into force in January 2002. Member states begin conducting unarmed aerial surveillance flights over each other's territory, sharing the collected imagery. The treaty builds transparency between NATO and Russia during a period of relative stability."},{"date":"2020-05-21","title":"Trump announces U.S. withdrawal — European allies urge reconsideration","summary":"The Trump administration announces the U.S. will withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty, citing Russian violations of flight restrictions over certain territories. European NATO allies immediately urge the U.S. to remain and address violations within the treaty framework rather than exiting."},{"date":"2020-11-22","title":"U.S. formally withdraws from Open Skies Treaty","summary":"The United States formally withdraws from the Open Skies Treaty six months after announcing its intention to do so. The withdrawal takes effect without a change in Russian compliance with the treaty provisions the U.S. had cited as justification."},{"date":"2021-01-15","title":"Russia announces withdrawal — cites U.S. departure as reason","summary":"Russia announces its intention to withdraw from the Open Skies Treaty, citing the U.S. withdrawal as its justification. This is precisely the outcome European allies had warned would result from the U.S. departure. The treaty is effectively gutted with both major military powers outside it."}],"location":{"name":"Washington, D.C.","lat":38.9072,"lng":-77.0369},"custom":{"era":"first-term","posture":"executive-action","warCrimeClassification":"enabling","internationalLaw":[],"iccRelevance":false,"victims":"Post-Cold War arms control architecture built over three decades; European allies whose security interests depended on the treaty's transparency mechanisms; the principle that multilateral agreements constrain state behavior through mutual verification rather than unilateral exit","structuredPerpetrators":[{"name":"Donald Trump","role":"President; announced U.S. withdrawal from the Open Skies Treaty citing Russian violations; rejected allied pleas to remain in the treaty and address violations within the framework; U.S. formally withdrew November 22, 2020; Russia subsequently exited the treaty in January 2021","institution":"White House"}],"updateLog":[{"date":"2020-11-22","summary":"Based on November 2020 formal U.S. withdrawal."}]}}