The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy

The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy

Author: Committee on International Security and Arms Control

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1997-07-01

Total Pages: 119

ISBN-13: 0309518377

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The debate about appropriate purposes and policies for U.S. nuclear weapons has been under way since the beginning of the nuclear age. With the end of the Cold War, the debate has entered a new phase, propelled by the post-Cold War transformations of the international political landscape. This volume--based on an exhaustive reexamination of issues addressed in The Future of the U.S.-Soviet Nuclear Relationship (NRC, 1991)--describes the state to which U.S. and Russian nuclear forces and policies have evolved since the Cold War ended. The book evaluates a regime of progressive constraints for future U.S. nuclear weapons policy that includes further reductions in nuclear forces, changes in nuclear operations to preserve deterrence but enhance operational safety, and measures to help prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons. In addition, it examines the conditions and means by which comprehensive nuclear disarmament could become feasible and desirable.


Book Synopsis The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy by : Committee on International Security and Arms Control

Download or read book The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy written by Committee on International Security and Arms Control and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1997-07-01 with total page 119 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The debate about appropriate purposes and policies for U.S. nuclear weapons has been under way since the beginning of the nuclear age. With the end of the Cold War, the debate has entered a new phase, propelled by the post-Cold War transformations of the international political landscape. This volume--based on an exhaustive reexamination of issues addressed in The Future of the U.S.-Soviet Nuclear Relationship (NRC, 1991)--describes the state to which U.S. and Russian nuclear forces and policies have evolved since the Cold War ended. The book evaluates a regime of progressive constraints for future U.S. nuclear weapons policy that includes further reductions in nuclear forces, changes in nuclear operations to preserve deterrence but enhance operational safety, and measures to help prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons. In addition, it examines the conditions and means by which comprehensive nuclear disarmament could become feasible and desirable.


US Nuclear Weapons Policy After the Cold War

US Nuclear Weapons Policy After the Cold War

Author: Nick Ritchie

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2008-08-08

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 1134036442

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This book offers an in-depth examination of America’s nuclear weapons policy since the end of the Cold War. Exploring nuclear forces structure, arms control, regional planning and the weapons production complex, the volume identifies competing sets of ideas about nuclear weapons and domestic political constraints on major shifts in policy. It provides a detailed analysis of the complex evolution of policy, the factors affecting policy formulation, competing understandings of the role of nuclear weapons in US national security discourse, and the likely future direction of policy. The book argues that US policy has not proceeded in a linear, rational and internally consistent direction, and that it entered a second post-Cold War phase under President George W. Bush. However, domestic political processes and lack of political and military interest in America’s nuclear forces have constrained major shifts in nuclear weapons policy. This book will be of much interest to students of US foreign policy, nuclear proliferation, strategic studies and IR in general.


Book Synopsis US Nuclear Weapons Policy After the Cold War by : Nick Ritchie

Download or read book US Nuclear Weapons Policy After the Cold War written by Nick Ritchie and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2008-08-08 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers an in-depth examination of America’s nuclear weapons policy since the end of the Cold War. Exploring nuclear forces structure, arms control, regional planning and the weapons production complex, the volume identifies competing sets of ideas about nuclear weapons and domestic political constraints on major shifts in policy. It provides a detailed analysis of the complex evolution of policy, the factors affecting policy formulation, competing understandings of the role of nuclear weapons in US national security discourse, and the likely future direction of policy. The book argues that US policy has not proceeded in a linear, rational and internally consistent direction, and that it entered a second post-Cold War phase under President George W. Bush. However, domestic political processes and lack of political and military interest in America’s nuclear forces have constrained major shifts in nuclear weapons policy. This book will be of much interest to students of US foreign policy, nuclear proliferation, strategic studies and IR in general.


Nuclear Weapons After the Cold War

Nuclear Weapons After the Cold War

Author: Michèle A. Flournoy

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Published: 1993

Total Pages: 340

ISBN-13:

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Book Synopsis Nuclear Weapons After the Cold War by : Michèle A. Flournoy

Download or read book Nuclear Weapons After the Cold War written by Michèle A. Flournoy and published by HarperCollins Publishers. This book was released on 1993 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:


Atomic Diplomacy

Atomic Diplomacy

Author: Gar Alperovitz

Publisher:

Published: 1965

Total Pages:

ISBN-13: 9780671061500

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Book Synopsis Atomic Diplomacy by : Gar Alperovitz

Download or read book Atomic Diplomacy written by Gar Alperovitz and published by . This book was released on 1965 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:


An Elusive Consensus

An Elusive Consensus

Author: Janne E. Nolan

Publisher: Brookings Institution Press

Published: 2001-03-31

Total Pages: 156

ISBN-13: 9780815791195

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The United States continues to maintain a large nuclear arsenal guided by a deterrence strategy little changed since the collapse of the Warsaw Pact. Notwithstanding changes in the size and composition of nuclear forces brought about since 1991, the fundamental rationales and planning principles which informed U.S. nuclear policy for decades remain in place--despite the disappearance of a superpower nuclear enemy. In this work, Janne E. Nolan traces the effort to articulate a post-cold war nuclear doctrine through decisions taken in the Bush and Clinton administrations, focusing on the leadership styles of presidents, bureaucratic politics, and broader foreign policy objectives. Based on in-depth interviews with policy participants, this study illuminates in detail the dynamics by which the U.S. government has tried to reflect the dramatically altered international arena in its nuclear policies. In two major policy developments--the 1994 Nuclear Posture Review and the decision to sign the African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty--U.S. policy makers sought to define the utility of nuclear weapons after the cold war and to gain broad-based consensus. For many reasons, these efforts were largely unsuccessful in developing coherent policies, with the absence of sustained presidential leadership proving most decisive.


Book Synopsis An Elusive Consensus by : Janne E. Nolan

Download or read book An Elusive Consensus written by Janne E. Nolan and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2001-03-31 with total page 156 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The United States continues to maintain a large nuclear arsenal guided by a deterrence strategy little changed since the collapse of the Warsaw Pact. Notwithstanding changes in the size and composition of nuclear forces brought about since 1991, the fundamental rationales and planning principles which informed U.S. nuclear policy for decades remain in place--despite the disappearance of a superpower nuclear enemy. In this work, Janne E. Nolan traces the effort to articulate a post-cold war nuclear doctrine through decisions taken in the Bush and Clinton administrations, focusing on the leadership styles of presidents, bureaucratic politics, and broader foreign policy objectives. Based on in-depth interviews with policy participants, this study illuminates in detail the dynamics by which the U.S. government has tried to reflect the dramatically altered international arena in its nuclear policies. In two major policy developments--the 1994 Nuclear Posture Review and the decision to sign the African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty--U.S. policy makers sought to define the utility of nuclear weapons after the cold war and to gain broad-based consensus. For many reasons, these efforts were largely unsuccessful in developing coherent policies, with the absence of sustained presidential leadership proving most decisive.


The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy

The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy

Author: National Academy of Sciences

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1997-06-17

Total Pages: 118

ISBN-13: 0309174643

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The debate about appropriate purposes and policies for U.S. nuclear weapons has been under way since the beginning of the nuclear age. With the end of the Cold War, the debate has entered a new phase, propelled by the post-Cold War transformations of the international political landscape. This volumeâ€"based on an exhaustive reexamination of issues addressed in The Future of the U.S.-Soviet Nuclear Relationship (NRC, 1991)â€"describes the state to which U.S. and Russian nuclear forces and policies have evolved since the Cold War ended. The book evaluates a regime of progressive constraints for future U.S. nuclear weapons policy that includes further reductions in nuclear forces, changes in nuclear operations to preserve deterrence but enhance operational safety, and measures to help prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons. In addition, it examines the conditions and means by which comprehensive nuclear disarmament could become feasible and desirable.


Book Synopsis The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy by : National Academy of Sciences

Download or read book The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy written by National Academy of Sciences and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1997-06-17 with total page 118 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The debate about appropriate purposes and policies for U.S. nuclear weapons has been under way since the beginning of the nuclear age. With the end of the Cold War, the debate has entered a new phase, propelled by the post-Cold War transformations of the international political landscape. This volumeâ€"based on an exhaustive reexamination of issues addressed in The Future of the U.S.-Soviet Nuclear Relationship (NRC, 1991)â€"describes the state to which U.S. and Russian nuclear forces and policies have evolved since the Cold War ended. The book evaluates a regime of progressive constraints for future U.S. nuclear weapons policy that includes further reductions in nuclear forces, changes in nuclear operations to preserve deterrence but enhance operational safety, and measures to help prevent proliferation of nuclear weapons. In addition, it examines the conditions and means by which comprehensive nuclear disarmament could become feasible and desirable.


U.S. Nuclear Weapons

U.S. Nuclear Weapons

Author: Amy F. Woolf

Publisher: Nova Novinka

Published: 2005

Total Pages: 86

ISBN-13:

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The Bush Administration conducted a review of US nuclear weapons force posture during its first year in office. Although the review sought to adjust US nuclear posture to address changes in the international security environment at the start of the new century, it continued many of the policies and programs that had been a part of the US nuclear posture during the previous decades and during the Cold War. This book provides an overview of the US nuclear posture to highlight areas of change and areas of continuity. During the Cold War, the United States sought to deter the Soviet Union and its allies from attacking the United States and its allies by convincing the Soviet Union that any level of conflict could escalate into a nuclear exchange and, in that exchange, the United States would plan to destroy the full range of valued targets in the Soviet Union. Other nations were included in US nuclear war plans due to their alliances with the Soviet Union. After the Cold War, the United States maintained a substantial nuclear arsenal to deter potential threats from Russia. It would not forswear the first use of nuclear weapons in conflicts with other nations, armed with chemical or biological weapons, and formed contingency plans for such conflicts. The Bush Administration has emphasised that the United States and Russia are no longer enemies and that the United States will no longer plan or size its nuclear force to deter a 'Russian threat'. Instead, the United States will maintain a nuclear arsenal with the capabilities needed to counter capabilities of any potential adversary, focusing on 'how we will fight' rather than 'who we will fight'. Furthermore, US nuclear weapons will combine with missile defences, conventional weapons, and a responsive infrastructure in seeking to assure US allies, dissuade US adversaries, deter conflict, and defeat adversaries if conflict should occur. Analysts and observers have identified several issues raised by the Administration's Nuclear Posture Review. These include the role of nuclear weapons in US national security policy, how to make the US nuclear deterrent 'credible', the relationship between the US nuclear posture and the goal of discouraging nuclear proliferation, plans for strategic nuclear weapons, and the future of non-strategic nuclear weapons.


Book Synopsis U.S. Nuclear Weapons by : Amy F. Woolf

Download or read book U.S. Nuclear Weapons written by Amy F. Woolf and published by Nova Novinka. This book was released on 2005 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Bush Administration conducted a review of US nuclear weapons force posture during its first year in office. Although the review sought to adjust US nuclear posture to address changes in the international security environment at the start of the new century, it continued many of the policies and programs that had been a part of the US nuclear posture during the previous decades and during the Cold War. This book provides an overview of the US nuclear posture to highlight areas of change and areas of continuity. During the Cold War, the United States sought to deter the Soviet Union and its allies from attacking the United States and its allies by convincing the Soviet Union that any level of conflict could escalate into a nuclear exchange and, in that exchange, the United States would plan to destroy the full range of valued targets in the Soviet Union. Other nations were included in US nuclear war plans due to their alliances with the Soviet Union. After the Cold War, the United States maintained a substantial nuclear arsenal to deter potential threats from Russia. It would not forswear the first use of nuclear weapons in conflicts with other nations, armed with chemical or biological weapons, and formed contingency plans for such conflicts. The Bush Administration has emphasised that the United States and Russia are no longer enemies and that the United States will no longer plan or size its nuclear force to deter a 'Russian threat'. Instead, the United States will maintain a nuclear arsenal with the capabilities needed to counter capabilities of any potential adversary, focusing on 'how we will fight' rather than 'who we will fight'. Furthermore, US nuclear weapons will combine with missile defences, conventional weapons, and a responsive infrastructure in seeking to assure US allies, dissuade US adversaries, deter conflict, and defeat adversaries if conflict should occur. Analysts and observers have identified several issues raised by the Administration's Nuclear Posture Review. These include the role of nuclear weapons in US national security policy, how to make the US nuclear deterrent 'credible', the relationship between the US nuclear posture and the goal of discouraging nuclear proliferation, plans for strategic nuclear weapons, and the future of non-strategic nuclear weapons.


U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy

U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy

Author: George Bunn

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2007-08-29

Total Pages: 357

ISBN-13: 0815713673

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A Brookings Institution Press and the Center for International Security and Cooperation publication What role should nuclear weapons play in today's world? How can the United States promote international security while safeguarding its own interests? U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy informs this debate with an analysis of current nuclear weapons policies and strategies, including those for deterring, preventing, or preempting nuclear attack; preventing further proliferation, to nations and terrorists; modifying weapons designs; and revising the U.S. nuclear posture. Presidents Bush and Clinton made major changes in U.S. policy after the Cold War, and George W. Bush's administration made further, more radical changes after 9/11. Leaked portions of 2001's Nuclear Posture Review, for example, described more aggressive possible uses for nuclear weapons. This important volume examines the significance of such changes and suggests a way forward for U.S. policy, emphasizing stronger security of nuclear weapons and materials, international compliance with nonproliferation obligations, attention to the demand side of proliferation, and reduced reliance on nuclear weapons in U.S. foreign policy.


Book Synopsis U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy by : George Bunn

Download or read book U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy written by George Bunn and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2007-08-29 with total page 357 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Brookings Institution Press and the Center for International Security and Cooperation publication What role should nuclear weapons play in today's world? How can the United States promote international security while safeguarding its own interests? U.S. Nuclear Weapons Policy informs this debate with an analysis of current nuclear weapons policies and strategies, including those for deterring, preventing, or preempting nuclear attack; preventing further proliferation, to nations and terrorists; modifying weapons designs; and revising the U.S. nuclear posture. Presidents Bush and Clinton made major changes in U.S. policy after the Cold War, and George W. Bush's administration made further, more radical changes after 9/11. Leaked portions of 2001's Nuclear Posture Review, for example, described more aggressive possible uses for nuclear weapons. This important volume examines the significance of such changes and suggests a way forward for U.S. policy, emphasizing stronger security of nuclear weapons and materials, international compliance with nonproliferation obligations, attention to the demand side of proliferation, and reduced reliance on nuclear weapons in U.S. foreign policy.


Post-Cold War Conflict Deterrence

Post-Cold War Conflict Deterrence

Author: Naval Studies Board

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1997-04-16

Total Pages: 244

ISBN-13: 0309553237

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Deterrence as a strategic concept evolved during the Cold War. During that period, deterrence strategy was aimed mainly at preventing aggression against the United States and its close allies by the hostile Communist power centers--the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and its allies, Communist China and North Korea. In particular, the strategy was devised to prevent aggression involving nuclear attack by the USSR or China. Since the end of the Cold War, the risk of war among the major powers has subsided to the lowest point in modern history. Still, the changing nature of the threats to American and allied security interests has stimulated a considerable broadening of the deterrence concept. Post-Cold War Conflict Deterrence examines the meaning of deterrence in this new environment and identifies key elements of a post-Cold War deterrence strategy and the critical issues in devising such a strategy. It further examines the significance of these findings for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. Quantitative and qualitative measures to support judgments about the potential success or failure of deterrence are identified. Such measures will bear on the suitability of the naval forces to meet the deterrence objectives. The capabilities of U.S. naval forces that especially bear on the deterrence objectives also are examined. Finally, the book examines the utility of models, games, and simulations as decision aids in improving the naval forces' understanding of situations in which deterrence must be used and in improving the potential success of deterrence actions.


Book Synopsis Post-Cold War Conflict Deterrence by : Naval Studies Board

Download or read book Post-Cold War Conflict Deterrence written by Naval Studies Board and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1997-04-16 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Deterrence as a strategic concept evolved during the Cold War. During that period, deterrence strategy was aimed mainly at preventing aggression against the United States and its close allies by the hostile Communist power centers--the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) and its allies, Communist China and North Korea. In particular, the strategy was devised to prevent aggression involving nuclear attack by the USSR or China. Since the end of the Cold War, the risk of war among the major powers has subsided to the lowest point in modern history. Still, the changing nature of the threats to American and allied security interests has stimulated a considerable broadening of the deterrence concept. Post-Cold War Conflict Deterrence examines the meaning of deterrence in this new environment and identifies key elements of a post-Cold War deterrence strategy and the critical issues in devising such a strategy. It further examines the significance of these findings for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. Quantitative and qualitative measures to support judgments about the potential success or failure of deterrence are identified. Such measures will bear on the suitability of the naval forces to meet the deterrence objectives. The capabilities of U.S. naval forces that especially bear on the deterrence objectives also are examined. Finally, the book examines the utility of models, games, and simulations as decision aids in improving the naval forces' understanding of situations in which deterrence must be used and in improving the potential success of deterrence actions.


Nuclear Inertia

Nuclear Inertia

Author: Tom Sauer

Publisher: I.B. Tauris

Published: 2005-09-23

Total Pages: 248

ISBN-13: 9781850437659

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The first book to study post-Cold War U.S. nuclear weapons policy. It is based on extensive original research with dozens of the key players, and sheds important new light US foreign policy. "Nuclear Inertia" examines why, despite the Cold War having ended more than ten years ago, the US still maintains an arsenal of over 10 000 nuclear warheads. Most explanations for this are to be found not in the structure of the international system but in domestic politics. Tom Sauer ascribes the lack of change to bureaucratic resistance, dogmatic thinking and lack of political leadership. Clinton tried to change US policy by initiating the 1993-1994 Nuclear Posture Review but was blocked by bureaucratic opposition. Sauer suggests that this points to a lack of civilian control over the military during the Clinton administration.


Book Synopsis Nuclear Inertia by : Tom Sauer

Download or read book Nuclear Inertia written by Tom Sauer and published by I.B. Tauris. This book was released on 2005-09-23 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first book to study post-Cold War U.S. nuclear weapons policy. It is based on extensive original research with dozens of the key players, and sheds important new light US foreign policy. "Nuclear Inertia" examines why, despite the Cold War having ended more than ten years ago, the US still maintains an arsenal of over 10 000 nuclear warheads. Most explanations for this are to be found not in the structure of the international system but in domestic politics. Tom Sauer ascribes the lack of change to bureaucratic resistance, dogmatic thinking and lack of political leadership. Clinton tried to change US policy by initiating the 1993-1994 Nuclear Posture Review but was blocked by bureaucratic opposition. Sauer suggests that this points to a lack of civilian control over the military during the Clinton administration.