Wilson Center Experts
Gregory Mitrovich
Short-Term Grant
Kennan Institute
Expertise:
Russia and Eurasia
; United States
Affiliation:
Consultant, Radio Free Europe Project, Hoover Institute, Stanford University
Wilson Center Project(s):
Irrelevant Supremacy: American Perceptions of the Nuclear Balance of Power, 1950-1963
Term:
Mar 01, 2000
Mar 01, 2000
Project Summary
Discusses government and public refusal to view Americas military superiority during the 1950s. Tries to place the fear, and the great interest in the nuclear capabilities of the Soviet Union. Discusses the manner by which US planners calculated the nuclear balance of power in a first strike attack, and the way these calculations lead to alarmist conclusions. Discusses the transition in US strategic thought.