NATO Official texts: NATO-Russia Glossary of Nuclear Terms and Definitions

This NATO-Russia Glossary of Nuclear Terms and Definitions was originally compiled in 2003 as directed and supervised by the Nuclear Experts under the auspices of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) and has been revised by NRC nations in 2006. It is the result of the ‘new quality of co-operation’ policy between the Alliance and the Russian Federation, invigorated by the 2002 Rome Declaration and the establishment of the NATORussia Council. The Glossary contains terms and definitions relevant to the various topics covered by NRC member nations during nuclear consultations. The terminology explained in this document will contribute to enhanced transparency and to a better mutual understanding of NATO and Russian Federation nuclear weapon issues. Thus, its use should lead to a deepened co-operation and increased mutual confidence in nuclear matters.

The document does not pretend to encompass all of the related terminology in use in NATO and the Russia Federation. The Glossary gathers relevant nuclear terms used by NRC member nations and lists them in one consolidated document. It has been developed intentionally for practical use and as such does not contain highly technical terms or definitions. Individual nation's entries have been complemented by terms extracted from the NATO-Russia Glossary of Contemporary Political and Military Terms, the NATO Glossary of Terms and Definitions (AAP-6), and the NATO Glossary of NBC Terms and Definitions (AAP-21)¹.

The publication of the document is considered valuable to facilitate NATORussia nuclear consultation and cooperation. Terminology contained in the document however does not supersede or take precedence over information contained in related NRC member nations’ documents and does not commit the Alliance or Russian Federation in any way.

Guy B. Roberts
Chairman, NRC Nuclear Experts

The purpose of this extensive document is to provide common, standardized specialist terms and definitions, related to nuclear issues, with a view to facilitating NATO-Russia nuclear consultations and cooperation through a better mutual understanding. The document should prove to be invaluable and facilitate communication at conferences, exercises or other fora where NRC member states exchange views on these issues. It does not commit NATO nations or Russia in any way.

Terminology incorporated in the nuclear glossary has intentionally been restricted to terms and definitions relevant to the topics discussed at NRC nuclear consultations: nuclear doctrine and strategy, nuclear weapon systems and nuclear weapon safety and security. The Glossary registers a comprehensive array of entries in three languages.

The NATO-Russia nuclear Glossary has been developed to satisfy the requirement for a reference document bringing together essential, but not always commonly understood, terminology. The document has been compiled to respond to a practical need and is not intended to commit NRC member nations by any means. This consolidated nuclear Glossary is considered to be a living document and will be updated as deemed necessary by NRC Nuclear Experts.

The main section of the Glossary consists of three parts, one for each language. Each part is subdivided into appendices: Appendix 1 shows entries from NATO or NATO-Russia publications; Appendix 2 lists non-NATO definitions; Appendix 3 contains an overview of categories of nuclear forces as defined by NATO and NRC nuclear powers. Entries in the document are considered to be fundamental and have been chosen based on their relevance to areas of common interest to NRC nations. Entries have been selected from official NATO, NATO-Russia or national documents and have been given due consideration before incorporation into the document. In cases where nations use different definitions for the same terms, all definitions have been provided and each definition is attributed to the applicable nation.

Entries are provided in three languages and are arranged in alphabetical order. Each entry consists of a term followed by explicatory text, a cross reference and the source if applicable, as well as the corresponding term in the two other languages. Where no consensus was achieved on an agreed definition, diverging definitions are shown in Appendix 2 of each part and are attributed to the nation(s) concerned. When a term consists of more than one word, the first word determines the place of the entry in the alphabetical listing. In case of words with more than one meaning, each definition is preceded by a number, with the main meaning listed first.