Joint Consultative Group
Established in 1990, the group aims to:
- Resolve ambiguities and differences in interpretation;
- Consider measures which can enhance the Treaty's viability and effectiveness;
- Resolve technical questions;
- Look into disputes that may arise from the Treaty's implementation.
Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe
The Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE) is regarded as the cornerstone of conventional stability and security from the Atlantic to the Urals. Signed in Paris on 19 November 1990, the legally binding agreement is the product of five years of negotiation on force limitations conducted within the framework of the then CSCE.
Treaty provisions
The Treaty provisions, negotiated by NATO and the Warsaw Treaty Organization, focused on establishing a military balance between the two alliances at a lower level of armaments. It is supplemented by the Concluding Act of the Negotiation on Personnel Strength of Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (the so called CFE-1A agreement), signed in 1992. The CFE Treaty was successfully implemented soon after signature, and allowed for the destruction of approximately 50,000 weapon systems and the creation of an unprecedented system of verification and transparency.
Treaty adaptations
However, it soon became clear that the treaty would have to be adapted to the changing security situation in Europe, particularly the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and the emergence of newly independent countries.
The result was the Agreement on Adaptation of the CFE Treaty, signed by the Heads of the States Parties to the Treaty at the Istanbul Summit in 1999. The Agreement will enter into force after ratification by all States Parties.
Treaty members
The following 30 States are currently party members to the CFE treaty: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy Kazakhstan, Luxembourg, Moldova, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, the Russian Federation, Slovakia, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, Ukraine and the United States of America.
