Strategic Defense in the Nuclear Age - (Contemporary Military, Strategic, and Security Issues) by Sanford Lakoff (Hardcover)

About the Book

When Ronald Reagan introduced the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) in 1983, he boldly challenged the long-accepted nuclear doctrine of mutual assured destruction. He argued that the development of this costly and complex missile defense system, popularly known as Star Wars, was the only viable and real alternative to the ongoing proliferation of nuclear weapons. While Reagan's vision unwittingly accelerated the end of the Cold War, SDI soon became a program shrouded in controversy. Costs soared and researchers struggled to develop the essential and successful technologies, although the threat of an atomic exchange with the former Soviet Union no longer loomed on the horizon. Despite those factors, SDI has survived. It remains in the active stages of development more than two decades after it was introduced, even as American policy makers struggle to counter the emerging threat posed by rogue states engaged in the active pursuit and development of atomic weapons. Devoid of any political agenda, Strategic Defense in the Nuclear Age presents a concise overview of the history of SDI, chronicling its successes and failures through the ongoing evolution of the program. It is the most up-to-date account on the market today.

Sanford Lakoff is an established expert on the development of SDI. In this work, he chronicles the history of the program from its initial introduction during the Reagan years, through the ongoing struggles associated with research and development that plague the program to this day. Each chapter provides analysis of the strategic, scientific, and diplomatic challenges policy makers and scientists struggle to overcome, at the same time exploring the changing strategic needs and specific purposes for the program. Offering a glossary that provides an explanation of key scientific terms and an appendix by noted physicist Richard L. Garwin, this book will appeal to scholars and students, as well as to the general public.

Book Synopsis

When Ronald Reagan introduced the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) in 1983, he boldly challenged the long-accepted nuclear doctrine of mutual assured destruction. He argued that the development of this costly and complex missile defense system, popularly known as Star Wars, was the only viable and real alternative to the ongoing proliferation of nuclear weapons. While Reagan's vision unwittingly accelerated the end of the Cold War, SDI soon became a program shrouded in controversy. Costs soared and researchers struggled to develop the essential and successful technologies, although the threat of an atomic exchange with the former Soviet Union no longer loomed on the horizon. Despite those factors, SDI has survived. It remains in the active stages of development more than two decades after it was introduced, even as American policy makers struggle to counter the emerging threat posed by rogue states engaged in the active pursuit and development of atomic weapons. Devoid of any political agenda, Strategic Defense in the Nuclear Age presents a concise overview of the history of SDI, chronicling its successes and failures through the ongoing evolution of the program. It is the most up-to-date account on the market today.

Sanford Lakoff is an established expert on the development of SDI. In this work, he chronicles the history of the program from its initial introduction during the Reagan years, through the ongoing struggles associated with research and development that plague the program to this day. Each chapter provides analysis of the strategic, scientific, and diplomatic challenges policy makers and scientists struggle to overcome, at the same time exploring the changing strategic needs and specific purposes for the program. Offering a glossary that provides an explanation of key scientific terms and an appendix by noted physicist Richard L. Garwin, this book will appeal to scholars and students, as well as to the general public.

Review Quotes

"Lakoff presents a not particularly enthusiastic overview of US programs and activities aimed at achieving active defense against intercontinental ballistic missiles. After describing the previous paradigm of mutual assured destruction, he reviews how Ronald Reagan and subsequent presidents moves toward active defense systems introduced problematic complications to arms control negotiations and overall strategic considerations, describes the Cold War politics of Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative, and examines the difficult technological obstacles to achieving a workable system even assuming that the financial expense and international political price would be worth paying." --Reference & Research Book News

About the Author

Sanford Lakoff is Professor of Political Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is co-author of A Shield in Space: Technology, Politics, and the Strategic Defense Initiative (1989) and has written or edited numerous other books and articles on the relationship between science and government and the history of political thought.