Nuclear Weapons in U.S. National Security Policy: Past, Present, and Prospects
Abstract
The Bush Administration has outlined a strategy of tailored deterrence to define the role that nuclear weapons play in U.S. national security policy. There has been little discussion of this concept, either in Congress or in the public at large. This leaves unanswered questions about how this strategy differs from U.S. nuclear strategy during the Cold War and how it might advise decisions about the size and structure of the U.S. nuclear arsenal. Throughout the Cold War, the United States relied on nuclear weapons to deter an attack by the Soviet Union and its allies and to forestall the outbreak of a global war between the United States and the Soviet Union. However, the broad Cold Warera agreement about the role of nuclear weapons in U.S. security policy began to dissolve during the 1990s, after the demise of the Soviet Union. Further, in response to emerging threats to U.S. national security, the Bush Administration has argued that the United States must alter its deterrence strategy from one size fits all deterrence to tailored deterrence for rogue powers, terrorist networks, and near-peer competitors.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Oct 29, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA473785
Entities
People
- Amy F. Woolf
Organizations
- Library of Congress