Strategic nuclear weapons, arms control, and the NATO alliance
Purchase Print Copy
| Format | List Price | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Add to Cart | Paperback73 pages | $25.00 | $20.00 20% Web Discount |
The development of new strategic nuclear weapons systems and the current chill in Soviet-American relations have clouded the future of strategic arms control. Prospective deployments of certain strategic weapons also strain relations between the United States and its NATO allies. This paper examines what systems are likely to be deployed during the 1980s, maps certain options for strategic arms control in light of these deployments, and explores their effect on the NATO alliance. The author concludes that reaching an arms control agreement will be difficult in view of the steady decline in the state of Soviet-American relations since the late 1970s and the larger number of systems now deployed in Europe. The greatest obstacle to an agreement is the apparent incompatibility of the goals pursued by each side: The Soviet Union is primarily concerned with stopping or restricting the U.S. Strategic Defense Initiative, while the United States seeks deep cuts in Soviet offensive forces.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation Paper series. The paper was a product of the RAND Corporation from 1948 to 2003 that captured speeches, memorials, and derivative research, usually prepared on authors' own time and meant to be the scholarly or scientific contribution of individual authors to their professional fields. Papers were less formal than reports and did not require rigorous peer review.
This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.