The Soviet Union and the Strategic Defense Initiative: Preliminary Findings and Impressions.

Abstract

This Note provides a background against which to evaluate possible Soviet alternatives for dealing with the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) in the decade ahead. Without speculating about what the Soviets will ultimately do in response to SDI, the Note (1) examines Moscow's statements on SDI to date, (2) reviews the highlights of Soviet doctrine and programs related to strategic defense, (3) considers the real concerns that may underline the Kremlin's public posturing on SDI, and (4) outlines the key political and strategic factors that will constrain the Soviets' eventual response. The author suggests that, assuming SDI does lead to a deployable U.S. ballistic missile defense, the Soviets will be driven to counter that threat within the limits of their economic and technical resources. Forecasting the technical details of their response at this time, however, is complicated by uncertainty not only about Soviet concerns, motivations, and intentions, but also about what the United States will eventually do with SDI. (Author)

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1986
Accession Number
ADA170925

Entities

People

  • Benjamin S. Lambeth

Organizations

  • RAND Corporation

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Counter WMD
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Agreements
  • Air Defense
  • Air Force
  • Anti-Ballistic Missiles
  • Arms Control
  • Ballistic Missiles
  • Directed Energy Weapons
  • Governments
  • Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • International Organizations
  • Military Science
  • National Security
  • Rockets
  • Space Defense
  • Strategic Defense Initiative
  • Treaties

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • Strategic Security Studies