UNDER NEW START, U.S. DEPLOYED STOCKPILE UP TO 1,688

The size of the United States’ strategic deployed nuclear stockpile increased by 24 warheads over the last six months according to the latest data released by the State Department. According to the Oct. 1 declaration, the U.S. had 1,688 strategic deployed warheads under the treaty’s counting rules as of Sept. 1, 2013, a small increase from the 1,654 it reported March 1 as part of the twice-a-year declarations required under the New START Treaty. Russia’s nuclear stockpile hit a low under the treaty as it said its stockpile dipped to 1,400, 80 fewer than it reported March 1. The U.S. also slightly increased the number of delivery vehicles (nuclear-capable bombers, ICBMs and submarine-launched ballistic missiles) to  809, 17 more than it had six months ago, while the number of Russian delivery vehicles decreased by 19, going from 491 to 473. The treaty allows 700 deployed delivery vehicles, and a total of 800 delivery vehicles, counting reserve systems. In total, the U.S. has 1,015 delivery vehicles, while Russia has 894. The U.S. and Russia must be beneath the treaty’s limits by 2018.