A global history of the nuclear arms race : weapons, strategy, and politics

Author(s)

• Burns, Richard Dean
• Siracusa, Joseph M.

Bibliographic Information

A global history of the nuclear arms race : weapons, strategy, and politics

Richard Dean Burns and Joseph M. Siracusa

（Praeger security international）

Praeger, c2013

• v. 1
• v. 2

Note

Includes bibliographical references and index

Description and Table of Contents

Description

Written by two preeminent authors in the field, this book provides an accessible global narrative of the nuclear arms race since 1945 that focuses on the roles of key scientists, military chiefs, and political leaders. The first book of its kind to provide a global perspective of the arms race, this two-volume work connects episodes worldwide involving nuclear weapons in a comprehensive, narrative fashion. Beginning with a discussion of the scientific research of the 1930s and 1940s and the Hiroshima decision, the authors focus on five basic themes: political dimensions, technological developments, military and diplomatic strategies, and impact. The history of the international nuclear arms race is examined within the context of four historical eras: America's nuclear monopoly, America's nuclear superiority, superpower parity, and the post-Cold War era. Information about the historical development of the independent deterrence of Britain, France, and China, as well as the piecemeal deterrence of newcomers Israel, India, Pakistan, and North Korea is also included, as is coverage of the efforts aimed at the international control of nuclear weapons and the diplomatic architecture that underpins the global nuclear non-proliferation regime.

Table of Contents

VOLUME 1 Preface 1. Vying for an A-Bomb: World War II Contestants Germany's Atomic Quest Britain's Early Contributions The United States' Successful Atomic Quest Hiroshima and Japan's Surrender Japan's Wartime Atomic Activities Soviet Scientists Begin the Quest Summary 2. The Emergence of a Bipolar Nuclear World Truman and the Politics of Atomic Power The United States Ponders Preventive Nuclear Strikes Origins of Stalin's Atomic Energy Program Developing the Soviet Atomic Bomb The Atomic Bomb and Cold War Origins 3. Seeking International Control of Nuclear Weapons Anglo-American Wartime Considerations Seeking an International Forum Evolution of the United States' Plan UNAEC Deliberations UNAEC Subcommittees Seek Compromise United States and USSR Extend Negotiations 4. NSC 68: Ramping Up the Nuclear Arms Race The Precursor: NSC 20 Series The Ideological Theme of NSC 68 Fear of a Soviet First Strike Possible U.S. Courses of Action Implementation of NSC 68 5. Doctrines and Strategies: From A-Bomb to H-Bomb Stalin's Doctrines and Strategies Khrushchev's Reassessment Great Britain's New Strategy Truman's Quest for a Nuclear Strategy Eisenhower Seeks a New Strategy Nuclear Weapons and the Korean Armistice Massive Retaliation Doctrine Eisenhower's "New Look" Strategy Western Civilian Strategists 6. Thermonuclear and Ballistic Missile Revolutions Truman Endorses the Hydrogen Bomb Soviets Enter the Thermonuclear Age Political and Strategic Effect of H-Bombs The Ballistic Missile Revolution U.S. Missile Programs The Soviet Union's Missile Programs The Russian Republic's Missiles 7. Fending Off Nuclear Weapons: Bomber and Missile Defenses, 1945–1980s U.S. Bomber and ABM Defenses McNamara, Johnson, and ABMs Soviet Urban Bomber and Missile Defenses Nixon, Brezhnev, and the 1972 ABM Treaty Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative 8. Feeding or Controlling the Nuclear Arms Race?: The 1950s Fear of a Surprise Attack Bomber and Missile Gaps From Atoms for Peace, IAEA to Open Skies Open Skies to the Surprise Attack Conference Quest for a Nuclear Test Ban Mutual Military-Industrial Complexes? 9. Toward a Flexible Response: From "Missile Gap" to the Berlin Crisis From Massive Retaliation to Flexible Response Tactical Nuclear Weapons and the Nuclear Threshold Limited Nuclear War Strategy Counterforce Strategy The Single Integrated Operational Plan Intelligence Estimates and the Missile Gap Nuclear Weapons and the Berlin Crisis 10. From Crisis to Renewed Hope: Cuban Missiles, the Test Ban, and China's Bomb The "Cuban" Missile Crisis The Quest for a Nuclear Test Ban Fear of Communist China's Bomb The Kennedy-Khrushchev Era Assessed VOLUME 2 11. Initial Independent Nuclear Forces: Britain, France, and People's Republic of China Britain, France, and the United States Great Britain Gains the Bomb France Pursues the Bomb The People's Republic of China Tests the Bomb 12. Regional Nuclear States: Israel, Iran, India, Pakistan, and North Korea Israel's Nuclear Weapons Iran's Nuclear Program A Middle East Nuclear-Free Zone? The Subcontinent's Nuclear Dilemma South Asia's Efforts at Nuclear Controls North Korea and Nuclear Weapons 13. Search for Strategic Stability: Superpowers Limit Nuclear Arms Johnson Initiates the Process Nixon and Brezhnev: Launching SALT Carter, Brezhnev, and SALT II Seeking a Nuclear War Fighting Strategy 14. Reagan, Gorbachev, and Nuclear Arms: Ending the Cold War Reagan and Gorbachev View Nuclear Arms NATO, Neutron Weapons, and Unilateralism Western Antinuclear Movement Geneva, Reykjavik, and Washington Summits False Nuclear Attack Warnings From "Launch on Warning" to Doomsday Machine 15. Post–Cold War: Superpowers' Nuclear Arms—Limits and Reductions START I and II Recall of Tactical Nuclear Weapons Cooperative Threat Reduction Programs Global Threat Reduction Initiative Nuclear Suppliers Group The Strategic Offensive Reduction Treaty (SORT) The New START Zero Nuclear Weapons? 16. Post–Cold War: Missiles and Missile Defenses—The Global Impact Patriot Systems in Two Gulf Wars U.S. BMD Systems since 1980 North Korean Missiles The People's Republic of China and Taiwan India and Pakistan's Missiles Japan and South Korea Iran's Missile Projects Israel's Missiles and Missile Defense Cruise Missiles and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles 17. The Nuclear Nonproliferation Regime Defining the Nonproliferation Regime Nuclear Proliferation: Good or Bad? Are Preventive Military Actions Viable? Quest for a Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty The Bad, the Ugly, the Optimistic: Three Enhanced NPT Reviews Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zones and Other Contributions 18. Reflections Selected References Index

by "Nielsen BookData"

Details

• NCID: BB12778788
• ISBN:
  • 9781440800948
  • 9781440800948
• LCCN: 2012040599
• Country Code: us
• Title Language Code: eng
• Text Language Code: eng
• Place of Publication: Santa Barbara, Calif.
• Pages/Volumes: 2 v. (xiii, 640 p.)
• Size: 25 cm
• Classification:
  • LCC : U264
  • DC23 : 355.8/25119
• Subject Headings:
  • LCSH : Nuclear weapons -- History
  • LCSH : Nuclear arms control -- History
  • LCSH : Arms race -- History -- 20th century
  • LCSH : Arms race -- History -- 21st century
• Parent Bibliography ID:
  • BB02217729