The Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty was agreed upon by the United States and the Soviet Union in Moscow, with the signing by President Richard Nixon and General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev. This treaty aimed to limit the deployment of missile defense systems that might interfere with or undermine the effectiveness of offensive nuclear weapons. At its core, the treaty was a reflection of the period of détente, a thaw in the Cold War characterized by increased diplomatic and economic exchanges between the two superpowers. The negotiations began in the late 1960s, amidst growing concerns over the escalation of the arms race, as both nations developed and stockpiled vast nuclear arsenals.The treaty allowed each country to maintain only two ABM systems: one protecting the national capital and another at an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) field. This approach was predicated on the principle of mutual assured destruction, which maintained that neither side could prevail in a nuclear exchange, thus incentivizing both to keep the peace. The agreement was met with mixed reactions on both sides, as some political figures criticized it for limiting national defense capabilities while others hailed it as a crucial step toward strategic arms control. The treaty also paved the way for subsequent arms control negotiations, including the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT), which sought to further reduce the stockpiles of nuclear weapons. Over the years, the ABM Treaty has acted as a fundamental cornerstone in the framework of arms control efforts, influencing both military strategy and foreign policy not only for the U.S. and Russia but also for global governance concerning nuclear weapons.