Arms Control Verification/Compliance (AVC)

The Arms Control, Verification and Compliance (AVC) Bureau’s core mission is to ensure that appropriate verification requirements and capabilities are fully considered and properly integrated throughout the development, negotiation, and implementation of arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament agreements and commitments, and to ensure that other countries’ compliance is carefully watched, rigorously assessed, appropriately reported, and resolutely enforced. The bureau leads U.S. efforts to develop arms control policies for the implementation of existing agreements and the negotiation of future agreements. AVC prepares the President’s annual report to Congress on Adherence to and Compliance with Arms Control, Nonproliferation, and Disarmament Agreements and Commitments. AVC has the lead within the Department of State on all issues related to missile defense and national security space policy. It also leads efforts to develop new verification and transparency technologies in support of arms control agreements and arrangements. AVC offices include:

• Office of Chemical and Biological Weapons Affairs (AVC/CBW): Responsible for efforts to promote the global ban on chemical weapons embodied in the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC); manages the U.S. National Authority for the CWC; and assesses compliance with the CWC and the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC).
• Office of Euro-Atlantic Security Affairs (AVC/ESA): Responsible for developing U.S. policy relative to existing and prospective European and Euro-Atlantic arms control agreements and security arrangements concerning conventional and nuclear weapons and forces, including the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE); the Vienna Document 1999 Confidence and Security- Building Measures (CSBMs); and the Treaty on Open Skies.
• Office of Missile Defense and Space Policy (AVC/MDSP): Responsible for policy and programmatic, technical, and threat issues related to strategic space transparency and confidence-building measures and issues concerning ballistic and cruise missile defenses.
• Office of Multilateral and Nuclear Affairs (AVC/MNA): Responsible for the efforts to promote the vision of a safe, secure world without nuclear weapons through the identification, negotiation, assessment, and implementation of global and multinational arms control, transparency, and confidence-building measures, and other measures.
• Nuclear Risk Reduction Center (AVC/NRRC): Operates dedicated, government-to-government communications systems on a 24-hour basis to support implementation of arms control and other security agreements.
• Office of Strategic Affairs (AVC/SA): Responsible for strategic arms control treaties and implementation of current and prospective arms control agreements involving strategic, intermediate-range, and nonstrategic nuclear weapons systems.
• Office of Verification and Transparency Technologies (AVC/VTT): Responsible for assessing the capability of technologies, systems, devices, and techniques to promote verification with arms control, nonproliferation, and disarmament agreements and commitments.