Strategic offense vs strategic defense: going back for the future. Student report

Technical Report · Tue Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 1986

OSTI ID:5550273

Phillips, C E

The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), started by President Reagan, was originally chartered to explore the key technolgies permitted by the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty so future Presidents and Congresses will have the technical options to start on development and deployment of a strategic defense system. This article establishes the fact and decisions to reduce current or future funding for strategic offensive nuclear weapons, prior to actual strategic defense system deployment, are premature and could seriously impact our ability to deter nuclear war. It also addresses SDI's impact on deterrence and uses historical examples to show it is too early to reduce funding for strategic offensive forces in anticipation of strategic defense system deployment. SDI technology needs time to mature and must not be pressured to provide a jury-rigged solution to our nuclear problems. While it is maturing, we must preserve our nuclear deterrent by continuing to upgrade and modernize our strategic offensive forces.

• Research Organization: Air Command and Staff Coll., Maxwell AFB, AL (USA)
• OSTI ID: 5550273
• Report Number(s): AD-A-166676/7/XAB
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEFENSE
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MILITARY STRATEGY
NUCLEAR DETERRENCE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS
TREATIES
NATIONAL DEFENSE
WEAPONS
990100* - Management
450202 - Explosions & Explosives- Nuclear- Weaponry- (-1989)