Road to a National Political Strategy for Missile Defense of Europe

Abstract

One of the best ways to prevent the impact of a weapon of mass destruction is to prevent its delivery. Ballistic missile delivery of a weapon of mass destruction remains one of the most difficult threats to counter. This is partly due to technology and partly due to politics and economics. The ground based anti-ballistic missile system being prepared for installation in Europe is the most promising technology for a durable, reliable counter to a WMD tipped ballistic missile launched at Western Europe. Typically a defensive system has few detractors, but in the case of ballistic missile defense (BMD), there is much more at work than designing and building a weapons system. To implement a ground based anti-ballistic missile system for Europe, the United States has to develop a political strategy that will emphasize the cooperative, NATO, character of the program; the sharing of responsibility for the system; and the merits of basing interceptors permanently in Europe.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 13, 2008
Accession Number
ADA482987

Entities

People

  • Timothy P. Reidy Jr.

Organizations

  • United States Army Command and General Staff College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Arms Control
  • Arms Control Treaties
  • Ballistic Missiles
  • Department Of State
  • European Union
  • Foreign Policy
  • Foreign Relations
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • Intermediate Range Ballistic Missiles
  • International Organizations
  • International Relations
  • National Politics
  • National Security
  • Theater Ballistic Missiles
  • Treaties
  • United States
  • Weapons Of Mass Destruction

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • Educational Psychology
  • Missile Defense Systems.
  • Strategic Security Studies