Ballistic Missile Defense Essay -- American Government, Nuclear Arsena

INTRODUCTION Today we live in a time where developing countries and terrorist organizations are vying for world power. A common way this is attempted is through the attainment of nuclear arms and delivery systems for them namely Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). Many of these countries are hostel to the United States and her allies. Also the existence counties with large nuclear arsenals such as Russia, increase the chance of an accidental launch. In order to counter threats form rouge nations and accidental ballistic missile launches, the United States should pursue development of a missile defense system. COLD WAR AND THE ABM TREATY The first ICBM, The R-7, was developed by the Soviet Union in 1953 (Korolev). After this event, both the Soviet Union and the United States started to develop and deploy increasingly powerful and accurate ICBMs. This build up of powerful weapons caused an escalation in tension between the U.S. and the USSR, both expecting an attack at anytime. The potential destructive force the weapons had and the high tension environment led to the theory of MAD or mutually assured destruction to come into existence. This theory works on the principle â€Å"that deterrence against a nuclear attack was to be maintained through the ability of each side to inflict an unacceptable degree of damage† (Lettow 22). MAD is the thing that kept nuclear Armageddon form occurring during the Cold War as both sides new that if they launched an all out attack, the other side would as well, destroying both. MAD relies on an equal balance of force, so that no one country feels like they could come out ahead in a nuclear war. Many top strategic experts were concerned that ABM systems could destabilize this delicate ... ...3). Although this is not a small amount it is a large improvement over the 1.2 trillion dollars required for a SDI scale project. The benefits conferred by this kind of plan: protection against small scale ICBM attacks and TBM attacks is worth the price. â€Å"The ultimate goal of missile defense is to convince countries that ballistic missiles are not militarily useful or a worthy investment and placed doubt in the minds of potential aggressors that a ballistic missile attack against the United States or its allies can succeed† (Missile Defense Agency). This form of missile defense would act as a deterrent to those countries to whom MAD does not apply. Countries hostile to the U.S. would be discouraged from attempting to use ballistic missiles against the U.S. in any first strike or strategic ways as it would provide no tactical advantage(Kaufman 116).