The Role of Missile Defense in Nuclear Deterrence
Abstract
After being largely ignored for that past two decades, nuclear weapons are once again at the forefront of U.S policy making. The recent negotiations for a Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty follow on and political rhetoric calling for the United States to lead the way in eliminating nuclear weapons from the world have spurned much political and academic debate on the role of nuclear weapons and nuclear deterrence in the security environment of today and the future. Recent attention has also been paid to the U.S. Ballistic Missile Defense system with critics calling for an all-out cancellation of the program and the Obama administration altering plans for deploying a missile defense system in eastern Europe. Missile defense advocates argue that such reductions increase the risk to the United States and its allies posed by rogue nations in possession of nuclear weapons and would take away a key component of future U.S. nuclear deterrence. This paper will examine the history of nuclear deterrence and missile defense; the role missile defense systems play in nuclear deterrence, and provide recommendations as to the future of missile defense.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2010
- Accession Number
- AD1020094
Entities
Organizations
- Air Command and Staff College