Soviet Strategic Arms Policy Before SALTIn this book, Christoph Bluth provides an original analysis of one of the most perplexing periods of Soviet foreign and military policy--the build up of strategic forces from the death of Stalin to the SALT I agreement. Bluth outlines Soviet strategic arms policy in this period, identifies the principal interest groups involved and studies a number of critical decisions taken in relation to strategic bombers, strategic nuclear forces based at sea, ballistic missile defence and the military uses of space. Strategic arms policy in the Khrushchev period exhibited a number of apparent paradoxes which the author explains. As well as examining external threat assessment and wider foreign policy, he pays particular attention to the role of domestic factors such as Khrushchev's endeavours to shift resources away from the military industries to agriculture and the production of consumer goods. Bluth is therefore able to demonstrate how domestic priorities and internal power struggles account for some of the seeming inconsistencies of military and foreign policy. Given current reassessments of the nature of the Soviet military threat and the revival of interest in the Khrushchev period, this book is most topical. Using source material hitherto unavailable, Bluth combines, for the first time, an analysis of foreign, military and domestic policy. Soviet strategic arms policy before SALT will, therefore, be of interest to a wide range of students and specialists of Soviet affairs, strategic studies and international relations. |
Contents
page | 11 |
Introduction 3 | 13 |
Decisionmaking in the Soviet Union | 26 |
Strategic nuclear power and foreignpolicy objectives | 40 |
Soviet military doctrine and policy | 83 |
Partymilitary relations and strategic arms policy | 121 |
The development of strategic bombers in the Soviet Union | 173 |
two case studies | 182 |
Soviet strategic nuclear power at sea | 194 |
The military uses of space | 219 |
Conclusion | 243 |
Notes | 251 |
294 | |
308 | |
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Common terms and phrases
American armed forces arms control arms race attack ballistic missile defence Berlin Crisis Berman and Baker Brezhnev build-up capabilities Central Committee command CPSU Cuban missile crisis debate decision decision-making deployed deployment détente disarmament economic emphasis Epishev Garthoff Ghebhardt global rocket Horelick Ibid ICBM imperialist important Khrush Khrushchev Khrushchev period Kolkowicz Kommunist Vooruzhennykh Sil Kosmos Kozlov Krasnaia Zvezda launch Malenkov Malinovskii Marshal MccGwire military science military space military strategy Ministry Ministry of Defence Moscow nuclear war nuclear weapons objectives Politburo Pravda professional military quoted result rôle Rybkin SALT satellites SLBMs socialist Sokolovskii Soviet Art Soviet foreign policy Soviet leadership Soviet military doctrine Soviet military policy Soviet Space Soviet strategic arms Soviet Strategic Forces Soviet Union space programme Stalin strategic arms policy strategic bomber strategic defence strategic nuclear strategic power Strategic Rocket Forces superiority Talenskii tion United Voenizdat Voennaia Mysl warheads Western Zhukov