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Washington-Moscow Hoteline →
Worldwide bilateral hotlines
Hotlines between nations provide a secure and reliable means of
communication in case of a (potential) crisis. The most
famous one is the Washington-Moscow Hotline of 1963,
which was a teleprinter link and, contrary to popular believe,
never had red telephone sets. In addition to this, there are several
other high- and lower-level communication channels between
nations that should reduce tension and the risk of a (nuclear) war,
some of which are highlighted below [1].
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The diagram below shows the major top-level hotlines in the world, of which
the triangle USA - Russia - China is arguably the most important one.
These hotlines are for direct use by heads of states and should help to
avoid a (nuclear) war in times of severe crisis.
Most of these hotlines were initially
(cryptographically secured)
teleprinter lines
that were later replaced by computers, except for the Washington-London
SIGSALY telephone line of 1943.
The most famous one is the Washington-Moscow Hotline that was
established in 1963 shortly after the 1962 Cuba crisis.
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Hotlines between presidents and/or prime ministers
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USA
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Russia
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China
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India
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Russia
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USA
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Russia
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USA
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China
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China
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USA
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Pakistan
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India
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UK
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UK
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Germany
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Germany
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France
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US Defense Telephone Link
DTL
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In addition to the presidential hotlines (above), the ministry of defense
of the United States has its own lower-level telephone network that can
be used in less critical situation to prevent misunderstandings between
countries. This network is known as the Defense Telephone Link (DTL).
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US Defense Telephone Link
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- Albania
- Austria
- Bahrain
- Bulgaria
- China
- Czech Republic
- Estonia
- Israel
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- Kazakhstan
- Kuwait
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Macedonia
- Oman
- Poland
- Qatar
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- Romania
- Russia
- Saudi Arabia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- UAE
- Ukraine
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Nuclear Risk Reduction Center
NRRC
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The Nuclear Risk Reduction Center (NRRC) was founded in 1987 by an agreement
between the American Secretary of State and the Soviet Foreign Minister. Its
purpose was to create an extra communication channel for the prevention of
nuclear war, in addition to the Washington-Moscow Hotline and
the regular diplomatic channels. The NRRC began operations on 1 April 1988
and is online 24 hours a day, relaying information about the arms activities
of both nations [2].
Today, the NRRC is part of the US Department of State in Washington
and the Russian Ministry of Defense in Moscow. In 2013, the scope of the
NRRC was expanded to included messages and inquiries regarding cybersecurity
incidents. On 31 October 2016, the Americans used the NRRC channel to demand
an end to the Russian interference with the US Presidential election [3][4].
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Nuclear Risk Reduction Center
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The Cybersecurity communications link is a bilateral intrument of the
United States and Russia, allowing the exchange of information about cybersecurity
incidents. It was established after the 39th G8 summit of 17 June 2013,
as part of a series of Confidence Building Measures (CBMs), and was intended
to reduce the danger from cyber seurity threats that appeared to originate
in both countries. The operation and maintenance of the Cybersecurity Link
was delegated to the NRRC.
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US Foreign Affairs Link
FAL
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In addition to the US Ministry of Defense, the Department of State
operates its own secured communicatation lines for foreign affairs, known as the
Foreign Affairs Link (FAL). It is a secure telephone line betwen the US
and Russia, and, since 1999, Japan, Israel, Germany and Mexico [1].
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In addition to the hotlines listed above, there are several further
direct communication lines between countries, intended for direct use
by the ministers of these countries. Some of these lines are
cryptographically secured but some are unencrypted.
For more information see [1].
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Any links shown in red are currently unavailable.
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Friday 05 August 2022. Last changed: Saturday, 06 August 2022 - 09:49 CET.
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