The Nuclear Arms - Essay Example

Take Home mid Exam The nuclear arms race can be basically defined as an era when the Soviet Union and the United sof America accumulated weapons of mass destruction for supremacy purposes. The USA and the Soviet Union competed to amass large amounts of nuclear weapons during the cold war. Apart from the United States and the Soviet Union, other nations also developed atomic/nuclear weapons. However, none of these countries tried to produce nuclear warheads on a massive scale like the Soviet Union and USA did. The United States of America was the first nation to create a nuclear weapon. This was during the Second World War. On the other hand, Soviet Union scientists were busy also developing their own nuclear weapons. The USA undertook the Manhattan project in secrecy since Britain and America did not trust the Soviet Union despite their allegiance at the time (Haass 67). America was the only nation after World War II which had nuclear power. It hoped that with the possession of nuclear weapons, it would manipulate and draw concessions from the Soviet Union. However, this was not to be the case since the Soviet Union also was continuously working behind the scenes to develop their own nuclear weapon. The Soviet Union was initially unable to build its own atomic weapon since the war limited its access to uranium. Thus, after the end of World War II, uranium deposits in Eastern Europe became readily available. The Soviet Union detonated its first nuclear bomb in 1949. Subsequently, both the United States of America and the Soviet Union commenced the construction of a hydrogen bomb. The United States tested the hydrogen bomb on November 1952. Also, the United States gain tested another hydrogen bomb in 1954 on bikini atoll. The introduction of the ICBMs (intercontinental ballistic missiles) was a major development during the arms race period (Weir Jr 87). Unlike bombers, missiles were seen as better carriers of nuclear warheads. To show the world that they could deploy a missile which could reach anywhere in the world, the Soviet Union launched into the earth orbit the sputnik satellite in 1957. The USA launched its version in 1959. MAD (Mutual Assured Destruction) The notion behind the nuclear arms race during the cold war was for supremacy purposes. The country with the largest arsenal would manipulate the other. Also, the mutual assured destruction concept or notion ensured that both the United States and the Soviet Union could not attack each other. Although both nations invested heavily in military defence programs, none of these were secure (Caldicott 76). By the end of the 1950s, the Soviet Union and America had enough nuclear power to completely wipe out each other. Both sides had second strike capabilities (in case of a full frontal assault, each of the nations could strike back via the use of submarines. This concept became to be popularly called the mutual assured destruction policy. Therefore, it restrained both sides from attacking or invading each other. Cuban missile crisis The Soviet Union supported the Cuban revolutionaries and thus propelled them to power. The United States of America did not recognize the legitimacy of Fidel Castro as the Cuban president. The Soviet Union on the other hand recognized his rule. To sabotage Cuba, the USA boycotted to purchase its sugar. However, the Soviet Union commenced buying Cuban sugar in exchange for fuel. Eventually, the Soviet Union placed nuclear ballistic missiles in Cuba. This action sparked the Cuban missile crisis which nearly led to a nuclear war. The missile placed in Cuba by the Soviet Union could reach the United States when launched. President Kennedy quickly called a crisis meeting to deliberate on the presence of soviet nuclear ballistic missiles in Cuba. President Kennedy reacted by placing a naval blockade around Cuba. Additionally, all American forces were ordered to DEFCON 3. Due to increasing tensions, President Kennedy ordered the American military into DEFCON 2. The mutual assured destruction theory kept the two nations from launching their nuclear warheads. This is the closest the world has been to an all-out nuclear war. American and Russian leaders worked behind the scenes to come to a diplomatic end to the Cuban crisis. After a lot of discussion, the Soviet Union agreed to withdraw its troops and missiles from Cuba. Also, the United States of America removed its nuclear missiles which had threatened the Soviet Union from turkey. Beginning in the early 1970’s, arms control and regulation measures began to be established in the form of treaties. The period from the 1970s required all nations to reduce their spending on the military or development of weapon systems. The SALT I and II treaties greatly limited America’s and the soviet’s arsenal (Holloway 32). The partial test ban treaty was aimed at allowing the nations to partially test their nuclear weapons. However, bans on anti-ballistic missile systems, nuclear testing and space weapons limited this treaty since it had the potential of re igniting the arms race. The Soviet Union and the USA commenced testing nuclear weapons again in before 1962. This prompted the signing of the Limited Test Ban Treaty in 1963. The 1963 treaty limited greatly the act of nuclear testing. Consequently, the United States, United Kingdom and the Soviet Union were bound by the treaty. Nonetheless, the treaty allowed the nations to test their nuclear weapons underground. The 1987 intermediate nuclear forces treaty eliminated a whole nuclear class of weapons. It was signed in Washington, USA. The Cuban missile crisis saw the concept of brinkmanship come into play. Brinkmanship is primarily defined as the act of pushing catastrophic events to dangerous levels so as to get an advantageous outcome. President Kennedy did this when he ordered the USA military into DEFCON 2. This act made the Soviet Union to back down and consequently make concessions. 2. Polk (chapter 10 p. 180) focuses on America’s involvement in the Vietnam War. The United States’ objective for entering the Vietnam conflict was to stop the spread of communism into South Vietnam. This was part of the USA’s foreign policy of containing the spread of communism in the world. The Vietnam War pitted North Vietnam aided by the Soviet Union against South Vietnam which was supported by America and other anti-communist nations. The USA believed that if South Vietnam became a communist state, other countries in the region would too become communist states. As such, the spread of communism into South Vietnam could not be accepted by the United States. North Vietnam initially viewed the war as a colonial war fought against France. In 1963, the communist North Vietnam commenced the Tet offensive to overthrow the government of South Vietnam. American troops during this period heavily bombed Cambodia and Laos. Although the Tet offensive did not achieve its goal, it showed that the American government’s claims that it will win the war were just imaginary despite the American government using vast resources to help South Vietnam. The American government withdrew from Vietnam and left South Vietnam forces to fight the communist war. More than twenty thousand American troops died during the withdrawal from Vietnam period. Therefore, the communist side won the war in 1973. The Vietnam War has been credited as the most brutal, destructive and longest guerrilla war in recent history. The war begun in 1955 up to 1975 when the communist North captured Saigon. According to various studies, the death toll from the Vietnam War is estimated at being nearly two million people in both the south and the north. Nearly fifty percent of the casualties were civilians. The United States led to the death of thousands of Vietnamese citizens through the use of massive military firepower and aerial bombs in populated areas. The USA government used extreme tactics during the war in order to emerge victorious. For instance, the American government employed herbicidal warfare tactics in South Vietnam. It thus sprayed more than 18.2 million gallons of Dioxin. They after effects of this chemical attack led to the maiming or death of more than 400000 people. Additionally, the chemicals affected pregnant mothers who subsequently gave birth to more than 500000 deformed children. In chapter 11, the Russians and the British invaded Afghanistan. The British and Russian employed very extreme counter insurgency method to annihilate the Afghanistan guerrilla fighters. These extreme measures led to the destruction of property and death of thousands of people. Also, war makes people poor. For instance, while moving from town to town, Polk (chapter 10) found people in Afghanistan on the brink of starvation. Moreover, during war, various atrocities are committed. The United States involvement in Vietnam led to the death and maiming of thousands s of people. This is in contrary to the USA’s objectives and goals of promoting human rights, democratization and improvement of living standards. During war, property worth millions of shillings is often destroyed. This affects the local people or people involved economically hence making them to become poor. American politicians and leaders have for generations emphasized on their intent to promote democracy abroad. The American government cites democracy promotion as its main international role. During World War I, President Wilson implied that the United States of America was fighting World War I in order to make the world safer. The United States casts its various military interventions in various parts of the world such as Afghanistan as missions to spread democracy in the world, in addition to poverty reduction. In the 1960s, Kennedy embraced the idea of fostering democracy in the developing world by intervening militarily in various nations. President Ronald Reagan also renewed the notion of democracy by campaigning against the soviets. Although the USA rhetoric of the advancement of democracy and poverty reduction seems impressive, there seems to be an inconsistent lack of policy reality. The USA’s emphasis of democracy and poverty reduction has often been outweighed by countervailing interests which are both economic and security related. Throught most centuries, the United States of America has intervened politically or militarily in in the internal affairs of other nations while conversely maintaining friendly ties with dictatorial regimes. This put into question the true intentions of the United States government. The prodemocracy and poverty reduction rhetoric advanced by the United States has more often than not been outweighed by reality. Also, poverty reduction and democracy interventions have been deployed by the United States to mask its true intentions. Nonetheless, the promotion of democracy and poverty reduction has been an integral part of American international tradition since time immemorial although its application has mostly been inconsistent. The American foreign policy is basically designed around democracy. The United States government through it foreign policy can intervene in the internal affairs of other countries if it deems that they are not conforming to the relevant ideals or practices. For example, America invaded Vietnam to stop the spread of communism. The USA intervention in most nations including Vietnam has been not worth the effort. Intervention has brought more harm than good to both the nations, the United States and the world at large. The often unstable countries where USA intervention has failed become breeding grounds for terrorists who are bent on destroying America. Also, war makes people to become poorer. This undermines America’s objectives and goals of democratization, human rights and the improvement of living standards. Additionally, the use of excessive force by American military is contrary to is beliefs. Works Cited Caldicott, Helen. Missile envy: the arms race and nuclear war. Toronto: Bantam Books, 1986.Print. Haass, Richard N. Intervention: The use of American military force in the post-Cold War world. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, 1999. Print. Holloway, David. The Soviet Union and the arms race. Vol. 198. No. 3. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1983. Print. Polk, William R. Violent Politics: A History of Insurgency, Terrorism, and Guerrilla War, from the American Revolution to Iraq. HarperCollins, 2007. Print. Weir Jr, G. John. "Nuclear Arms Race." Archives of Internal Medicine 143.5 (1983): 1072. Print. Read More