On September 14, with many thanks to the National Security Archive and Jimmy Carter’s Presidential Library, a group of documents describing Carter’s plans for nuclear war were declassified. Presidential Directive 59 (PD-59), entitled Nuclear Weapons Employment Policy, was controversial following its summer 1980 release. PD-59, also known as the countervailing strategy, sought to strengthen deterrence of the Soviet Union by holding at risk the Soviet Union’s ability to wage nuclear war and maintain its power, refining selective nuclear strike options, providing the President with both a full range of pre-planned options for nuclear use and the flexibility to adapt its nuclear strike plans depending on the situation, and demonstrating the US ability to engage in a protracted nuclear conflict if necessary. Whether this strategy actually strengthened deterrence remains contested.
Arms Control Today Quotes Phil Coyle on Missile Defense
“Report Critiques U.S. Missile Defense” By Tom Z. Collina Arms Control Today Arguing that the U.S.-based ballistic missile interceptor system is “very expensive” but has “limited effectiveness” against potential attacks from Iran, a September report by the independent National Research Council recommends replacing the current system with a revamped but largely similar system and […]
The Daily Tar Heel Quotes Laicie Olson on Military Budget
“Military expert talks budget cuts” By Jordan Bailey The Daily Tar Heel To U.S. military expert Col. William Hauser, the United States is no longer the world’s super power. And at a speech in Graham Memorial Monday, Hauser said the belief that the U.S. is still a military superpower is antiquated and has lead to […]
Quote of the Day: WTF Edition
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the North Korean leader-du-jour threaten others with nuclear annihilation, implied or otherwise. Who knows what level of self-destruction they would risk for their cause? Our weakness and neglect of the U.S. nu…
Evolution of a Terrorist Group
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton informed Congress on Friday, September 21 that the Iranian opposition group Mujahedin-e-Khalq‘s (MEK) will be removed from the U.S. foreign terrorist organization list. Many worry that this decision, announced just days before her October 1st deadline to make a verdict, will exacerbate already tense relations with the government of Iran.
