Nuclear Risk Reduction Center

{{Short description|U.S. Department of State agency}}

The Nuclear Risk Reduction Center (NRRC) is part of the United States Department of State. Its Russian counterpart in Moscow is the National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center in the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The NRRC was created in 1987 by an agreement between the United States Secretary of State and the Soviet Foreign Minister.{{cite web |url= https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/remarks-signing-the-soviet-united-states-nuclear-risk-reduction-centers-agreement |title= Ronald Reagan: "Remarks on Signing the Soviet-United States Nuclear Risk Reduction Centers Agreement," September 15, 1987 |author1=Peters, Gerhard |author2=Woolley, John T |publisher = University of California - Santa Barbara |work= The American Presidency Project}} Its purpose was to create an additional channel of communication for the prevention of nuclear war, in addition to the Hot Line and diplomatic channels.{{cite news |title=Washington-Moscow Hotline |first=Andrei |last=Kislyakov |quote=Later dubbed "Hot Line," the Washington-Moscow link was designed to continue to build up trust between the two countries, prevent the use of nuclear weapons as a result of misunderstanding or contradictory information in crisis situations. |publisher=RIA Novosti |date=2003 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030719173427/http://www.cdi.org/russia/263-12.cfm |url=http://www.cdi.org/russia/263-12.cfm |archive-date=July 19, 2003}} The NRRC began operations on April 1, 1988.{{Cite news |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/t/avc/rls/199564.htm |publisher=Bureau of Arms Control, Verification, and Compliance |title=United States Nuclear Risk Reduction Center (NRRC) |date=October 24, 2012 |quote=Secretary Shultz, Soviet Foreign Minister Shevardnadze, National Security Advisor Powell, Deputy Secretary of Defense Taft, Senator Nunn, Senator Warner, Soviet Ambassador Dobrynin, and U.S. Ambassador to the USSR Jack F. Matlock opened the U.S. NRRC on March 22, 1988, and exchanged the first message with the Soviet NRRC. The NRRC began formal operations on April 1, and the first treaty notification was transmitted to the Soviet NRRC five days later. The first notification from the Soviet Union was received on June 2, 1988.}} The NRRC is online 24 hours a day and relays information regarding the arms activities of both nations so as to prevent accidental outbreak of nuclear war.

In 2013, the Nuclear Risk Reduction Center was expanded in scope in order to convey inquiries and messages regarding cybersecurity incidents.{{cite news |url=https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/us-response-russian-pre-election-meddling-overview |publisher=Lawfare |date=December 19, 2016 |first=Andrew |last=McClure |title=The U.S. Response to Russian Pre-Election Meddling: An Overview |quote= In 2013, the U.S. and Russia agreed to expand the scope of the NRRC link to exchange inquiries regarding cyber security incidents. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240113125430/https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/us-response-russian-pre-election-meddling-overview |archive-date=January 13, 2024}}{{cite news |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2013/06/17/fact-sheet-us-russian-cooperation-information-and-communications-technol |publisher=White House Office of the Press Secretary |title=FACT SHEET: U.S.-Russian Cooperation on Information and Communications Technology Security |date=June 17, 2013 |quote=To prevent crises, the United States and Russia also recognize the need for secure and reliable lines of communication to make formal inquiries about cybersecurity incidents of national concern. In this spirit, we have decided to use the longstanding Nuclear Risk Reduction Center (NRRC) links established in 1987 between the United States and the former Soviet Union to build confidence between our two nations through information exchange, employing their around-the-clock staffing at the Department of State in Washington, D.C., and the Ministry of Defense in Moscow. As part of the expanded NRRC role in bilateral and multilateral security and confidence building arrangements, this new use of the system allows us to quickly and reliably make inquiries of one another's competent authorities to reduce the possibility of misperception and escalation from ICT security incidents. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170128174243/https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2013/06/17/fact-sheet-us-russian-cooperation-information-and-communications-technol |archive-date=January 28, 2017}} On October 31, 2016, the channel was used to convey a message demanding an end to Russian interference with the United States Presidential election.{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/in-our-new-cold-war-deterrence-should-come-before-detente/2016/11/15/051f4a84-ab79-11e6-8b45-f8e493f06fcd_story.html |first=David |last=Ignatius |date=November 15, 2016 |quote=The message was sent on a special channel created in 2013 as part of the Nuclear Risk Reduction Center, using a template designed for crisis communication. "It was a very clear statement to the Russians and asked them to stop their activity," a senior administration official said, adding: "The fact that we used this channel was part of the messaging." |title=In our new Cold War, deterrence should come before detente |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=December 29, 2016}}{{cite news |title=Trump Skips Intelligence Briefings, Denies Russian Election Mischief |publisher=National Public Radio |date=December 8, 2016 |first=Mary Louise |last=Kelly |quote=A second senior administration official reached by phone confirms the U.S. sent Moscow a message back on October 31. It was delivered via the Nuclear Risk Reduction Center through a special channel designed for crisis communication. The message - that cyber intrusions need to stop. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161229053800/http://www.npr.org/2016/12/08/504864988/trump-skips-intelligence-briefings-denies-russian-election-mischief |archive-date=December 29, 2016 |url=https://www.npr.org/2016/12/08/504864988/trump-skips-intelligence-briefings-denies-russian-election-mischief}}