THE EVOLVING NATURE OF THE WARSAW PACT,

Abstract

An examination of the changes that have taken place in the Warsaw Pact alliance since 1960. The author finds that the first years of the alliance merely institutionalized existing arrangements in East Europe (i.e., the six East Europe countries as a Soviet defensive zone against the West). This function remains; since 1961, however, the Soviets have also expected the six countries to contribute armed forces to military operations. This has meant a more thorough integration of East European forces into Soviet operational plans. The apparent result is a twoway pull: (1) toward increasing interdependence; and (2) toward asserting separate national interests, and, on the part of East Europe, insisting on a greater role in the decision-making process. The political reasons for the changes in the alliance, and their implication for future Soviet policy, are discussed in detail. An annotated bibliography on the history of the Warsaw Pact is provided. (Author)

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1965
Accession Number
AD0626921

Entities

People

  • Thomas W. Wolfe

Organizations

  • RAND Corporation

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Alliances
  • Bibliographies
  • Foreign Relations
  • International Relations
  • Military Operations

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP).
  • Systems Analysis and Design