DOCSLIB.ORG

A Paucity Ofverifiable So

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
A Paucity Ofverifiable So 986 The Journal of American History The flaws in this book, such as they are, are Many of the critical decisions of the last fifty those one would expect - a paucity ofverifiable years-from dropping the atomic bombs on]a­ source citations, particularly for many direct pan to developing thermonuclear weapons­ quotations, and a journalist's tendency to be could, as the author proves, have been decided more chatty than analytical. Even so, I found otherwise. But Bundy finds that less conven­ The Mastero/the Game enlightening, percep­ tional alternatives-such as detonating a demon­ tive, and highly gratifying for the long-overdue stration atomic bomb or proposing a hydrogen recognition it accords Nitze. bomb test ban in lieu of the bomb's deploy­ Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/jah/article/76/3/986/760762 by guest on 25 September 2021 Steven 1. Rearden ment- were rarely given serious consideration. Washington, D.C. Bundy, for the most part, agrees with the im­ portant decisions but sees danger in the ten­ dency ofgovernment officials, in their quest for DangerandSurvival: Choices about the Bomb secrecy, to isolate themselves from differing in the First Fifty }Bars. By McGeorge Bundy. opinions. (New York: Random House, 1988. xvi + 735 Bundy convincingly challenges the widely pp. $24.95.) held notion that nuclear weapons can be in­ struments ofcompellence. Citing numerous ex­ McGeorge Bundy's Danger and Survival is so amples, from Eisenhower's threats against Chi­ important a book that no one with an interest na to Nikita Khrushchev's saber-rattling over in national security affairs can afford to pass it Berlin, Bundy expresses considerable skepticism up. about the utility of nuclear diplomacy. Bun­ The book covers familiar ground - the his­ dy's interpretation will find little favor among tory ofAmerican strategic policy in the nuclear conservatives who see nuclear superiority as a age-and the recitation of events surrounding source of political leverage. In his chapter on historic decisions and crises does not, except for the missile crisis, the author demonstrates bril­ the case ofthe Cuban missile crisis, break much liantly that nuclear superiority can hardly con­ new ground. But the insights are sensible and fer confidence on its possessor when the instru­ thought-provoking, the writing powerful, and ments ofretaliation are sufficient to obliterate the themes masterfully woven throughout. whoever strikes first. In Bundy's reasoned opin­ Bundy begins with a fascinating account of ion, no statesman, on either side ofthe nuclear President Franklin D. Roosevelt's closely held divide, has ever managed to escape this fun­ decision to build an atomic bomb, and he damental reality. parallels the American effort with those ofGreat A believer in the centrality ofnuclear deter­ Britain, France, Germany,]apan, and the Sovi­ rence and responsible arms control, McGeorge et Union. From there he proceeds to examine Bundy, with insights developed as a historian the critical issues and decisions of the nuclear and practitioner, has given us one of the best age: the bombings ofHiroshima and Nagasaki, available expositions on the realities ofnuclear the ill-fated Baruch Plan, the hydrogen bomb weapons. project ofthe United States, Dwight D. Eisen­ Bernard J. Firestone hower's massive retaliation strategy, thequaran­ Hofstra University tine ofCuba during the missile crisis, and the American response to the giant Soviet military buildup of the 1960s and 1970s. Explored as Foreign Relations 0/the United States: 1952­ well are the nuclear programs of European al­ 1954. Ed. by William Z. Slany. (Washington: lies, along with those ofIsrael and China. The United States Government Printing Office, ambitious sweep of this volume might have 1988. Vol. VIII: Eastern Europe; Soviet Union; defeated a less skilled historian and author, but Eastern Medite"anean. xxx + 1463pp. $33.00.) in Bundy's hands the events join together to form a riveting story ofhuman initiative, fears, Like so many of its predecessors in the series, and missed opportunities. this volume provides much that is interesting Central to Bundy's thesis is the importance and illuminating with respect to American poli­ ofchoice in the formulation ofnuclear policy. cies and the manner in which they are devel-.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Rethinking Atomic Diplomacy and the Origins of the Cold War
    Journal of Political Science Volume 29 Number 1 Article 5 November 2001 Rethinking Atomic Diplomacy and the Origins of the Cold War Gregory Paul Domin Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/jops Part of the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Domin, Gregory Paul (2001) "Rethinking Atomic Diplomacy and the Origins of the Cold War," Journal of Political Science: Vol. 29 : No. 1 , Article 5. Available at: https://digitalcommons.coastal.edu/jops/vol29/iss1/5 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Politics at CCU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Journal of Political Science by an authorized editor of CCU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Rethinking Atomic Diplomacy and the Origins of the Cold War Gregory Paul Domin Mercer University This paper argues that the conflict between nuclear na­ tionalist and nuclear internationalist discourses over atomic weapons policy was critical in the articulation of a new system of American power . The creation of the atomic bomb destroyed the Roosevelt's vision of a post­ war world order while confronting United States (and Soviet) policymakers with alternatives that, before the bomb's use, only a handful of individuals had contem­ plated. The bomb remade the world . My argument is that the atomic bomb did not cause the Cold War, but without it, the Cold War could not have occurred . INTRODUCTION he creation of the atomic bomb destroyed the Roose­ veltian vision of a postwar world order while confronting TUnited States (and Soviet) policymakers with a new set of alternatives that, prior to the bomb's use, only a bare handful of individuals among those privy to the secret of the Manhattan Project had even contemplated.
    [Show full text]
  • Russia and the United States
    RUSSIA AND THE UNITED STATES With articles by Dmitri Trenin Barry Blechman, Alex Bollfrass, and Frank Valliere Edited By Barry Blechman July 2009 2 | KHAN Copyright ©2009 The Henry L. Stimson Center Cover design by Shawn Woodley Photograph on the front cover from PH1 Michael J. Rinaldi/DefenseImagery.mil All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written consent from The Henry L. Stimson Center. The Henry L. Stimson Center 1111 19th Street, NW 12th Floor Washington, DC 20036 phone: 202-223-5956 fax: 202-238-9604 www.stimson.org PREFACE I am pleased to present Russia and the United States, the fifth in a series of Stimson publications addressing questions of how the elimination of nuclear weapons might be achieved. The Stimson project on nuclear security explores the practical dimensions of this critical 21st century debate, to identify both political and technical obstacles that could block the road to “zero,” and to outline how each of these could be removed. Led by Stimson's co-founder and Distinguished Fellow Dr. Barry Blechman, the project provides useful analyses that can help US and world leaders make the elimination of nuclear weapons a realistic and viable option. The series comprises country assessments, to be published in a total of six different monographs, and a separate volume on such technical issues as verification and enforcement of a disarmament regime, to be published in the fall. This fifth monograph in the series, following volumes on France and the United Kingdom, China and India, Israel and Pakistan and Iran and North Korea, examines the two nuclear superpowers that together posses more than 95 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons.
    [Show full text]
  • The Baruch Plan Revisited
    Calhoun: The NPS Institutional Archive Theses and Dissertations Thesis Collection 1993-09 The Baruch Plan revisited Johnson, Robert Michael Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School http://hdl.handle.net/10945/39955 NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL Monterey, California AD-A275 064. J4~~AN 3194 "THESIS THE BARUCH PLAN REVISITED by Robert M. Johnson September 1993 Thesis Advisor: Patrick J. Parker Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited. 94 1t 2 8 i8Itlllhiliilitl 94-02881 Unclassified SECURITY CLASSIFICATION OF THIS PAGE REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE la. REPORT SECURITY CLA•SIFICATION lb. RETRICTIVE NuMANGS Unclassified Unclassified OF REPORT 2a. SECURITY CLASSIFICATION AUTHORITY 3. ApprovedDISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY for public release; distribution is unlimited. 2b. DECLASSIIICATION/DOWNGRADING SCHEDULE 4. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER(S) 5. MONITORING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER(S) 6a. NAME OF PERFORMING ORGANIZATION 6b. OFFICE SYMBOL 7a. NAME OF MONITORING ORGANIZATION Naval Postgraduate School (if Applicable) Naval Postgraduate School 6c. ADDRESS (city, stato,and ZIP code) b. ADDRESS (city, utate, and ZIP code) Monterey, CA 93943-5000 Monterey= CA 93943-5000 8a. NAME OF FUNDING/SPONSORING 6b. OFFICE SYMBOL 9. PROCUREMENI INSTRUMENT IDENTIFICATION NUMBER ORGANIZATION (If Applicable) 8c ADDRESS (city. state, and ZIP code) 10. SOURCE OF FUNDING NUMBERS PROGRAM PROJECT7 TASK WORK UNIT ELEMENT NO. NO. NO. ACCESSION NO. 11. T ILE (Include Security Classification) The Baruch Plan Revisited. (U) 12. PERSONAL AUTHOR(S) Johnson, Robert M. 13a. TYPEOUREPORT 13b. TIME COVERED 14. DATE OF REPORT (year, monuAday) 15. PAGE COUNT Master's Thesis FROM TO 1993 September 15 49 16. SUPPLEMENTARY NOIAIION The views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Review Article Counting the Costs of the Nuclear Age
    Review article Counting the costs of the nuclear age THEO FARRELL Atomic audit: the costs and consequences of US nuclear weapons since . Edited by Stephen I. Schwartz. Washington DC: Brookings Institution Press, . pp. Index. . America’s NBC radio was suitably dramatic in its report of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. ‘Anglo-Saxon science has developed a new explosive , times as destructive as any known before’, it announced. The broadcaster went on to warn that ‘For all we know, we have created a Frankenstein! We must assume that with the passage of only a little time, an improved form of the new weapon we use today can be turned against us.’ As things turned out, the United States had indeed created a nuclear monster, which consumed huge amounts of public resources and quickly grew to threaten the very existence of humanity. Throughout the Cold War, the true costs and dangers of the nuclear age were hidden behind a veil of secrecy. However, recent years have seen far greater access to archival and interview material on this highly sensitive area of national security. This, in turn, has enabled scholars to construct a far more accurate and terrifying picture of the dangers faced in the nuclear age. Now with Atomic audit we also have a better idea of how much it cost: $. trillion for the American taxpayer alone. Cited in Paul Boyer, By the bomb’s early light: American thought and culture at the dawn of the atomic age (Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, , nd edn, p.. The key works here are Bruce Blair, The logic of accidental nuclear war (Washington DC: Brookings Institution, ); Scott D.
    [Show full text]
  • A Brief History of Nuclear Proliferation
    A Brief History of Nuclear Proliferation By Volha Charnysh, NAPF Intern Introduction In the last hundred years, life expectancy doubled and many deadly illnesses were eradicated. The world would be a better place to live, had the astonishing scientific discoveries not been devalued with building the atomic bomb – an invention that can destroy life on earth in an instant. Fredrick Soddy, who together with Ernest Rutherford discovered in 1901 that radioactivity involved the release of energy, described an atomic future in which humanity could “transform a desert continent, thaw the frozen poles, and make the whole Earth one smiling Garden of Eden.”1 While the poles are indeed thawing, the earth hardly looks like paradise. Instead, people fear nuclear Armageddon, and the power of the atom is becoming synonymous with death and destruction. Today, nine states have nuclear weapons and many more can easily acquire those, although only five states are officially recognized as possessing nuclear weapons by the 1968 nuclear Non- Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Those are the United States (1945), Russia (1949), the United Kingdom (1952), France (1960) and China (1964).2 Three states never joined the NPT but are known to possess nuclear weapons: Israel (n/a), India (1974), Pakistan (1998), and North Korea (2006).3 Two additional states that present immediate proliferation concerns are Iran and Syria. Citizens of those states have paid a heavy price in taxes and/or sanctions and sacrificed opportunities for economic and educational development to build weapons that can destroy their lives. 1 Richard E. Sclove, “From Alchemy to Atomic War: Frederick Soddy's ‘Technology Assessment’ of Atomic Energy, 1900-1915,” Science, Technology, & Human Values, Vol.
    [Show full text]
  • Henry A. Wallace's Criticism of America's Atomic Monopoly, 1945
    Henry A. Wallace’s Criticism of America’s Atomic Monopoly, 1945-1948 Henry A. Wallace’s Criticism of America’s Atomic Monopoly, 1945-1948 By Mayako Shimamoto Henry A. Wallace’s Criticism of America’s Atomic Monopoly, 1945-1948 By Mayako Shimamoto This book first published 2016 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2016 by Mayako Shimamoto All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-4438-9951-8 ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-9951-2 For Kojiro and Masahiro TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ...................................................................................................... ix Acknowledgments ....................................................................................... x Introduction ................................................................................................. 1 Chapter One ................................................................................................. 4 Earlier Studies and Position of this Study Chapter Two .............................................................................................. 25 Henry Wallace Meets with the Atomic Scientists Chapter Three ...........................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • [ 1951 ] Part 1 Chapter 3 Political and Security Questions
    III. Political and Security Questions1 A. DISARMAMENT 1. Regulation, Limitation and Balanced cording to which the size of all armed forces Reduction of All Armed Forces and would be limited, the portion of national produc- All Armaments tion which could be used for military purposes would be restricted, and mutually agreed national The item "Regulation, limitation and balanced military programmes would be arrived at within reduction of all armed forces and all armaments" the prescribed limits and restrictions. The United was placed on the agenda of the sixth session of Nations plan for the international control of the General Assembly at the joint request of atomic energy and the prohibition of atomic France, the United Kingdom and the United weapons should continue to serve as the basis for States (A/1943). The explanatory memorandum the atomic energy aspects of any general pro- accompanying the request referred briefly to the gramme, unless and until a better and more ef- manner in which the problems of the regulation fective plan could be devised. of armaments and the international control of The three Governments considered that discus- atomic energy had been dealt with in the United sion of the programme should begin forthwith, Nations in previous years. It also referred to a but that a general programme could not be put joint statement issued by the Governments of into effect while United Nations forces were re- France, the United Kingdom and the United sisting aggression in Korea. Concurrently with States on 7 November 1951. the coming into effect of the programme, the This statement, a copy of which was attached major political issues dividing the world could to the memorandum, declared the intention of the and must be settled, it was stated.
    [Show full text]
  • The Waning of Pax Americana? “Axis of Evil”: a Phrase Used by Former U.S
    GREA1918 • FOREIGN POLICYT ASSOCIATION DECISIONS EDITION 2018 The waning of Pax Americana? “axis of evil”: A phrase used by former U.S. Presi- dent George W. Bush in his 2002 State of the Union Acronyms and abbreviations address and reiterated during his administration to gain the support of the American public for the “War ADB—Asian Development Bank on Terror.” The phrase refers to those governments around the world that were allegedly attempting to GATT—General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade obtain weapons of mass destruction and/or promoting terrorism. Throughout this period, the “axis of evil” GDP—gross domestic product generally implicated Iran, Iraq and North Korea. ISIS—Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (IS—Islamic Baruch Plan: A 1946 proposal by the U.S. government State; ISIL—Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant; to achieve global cooperation on nuclear oversight Daesh) by ceding the control of atomic weapons to the UN. LIO—liberal international order Unable to achieve support, the plan was not established and in fact had the opposite effect than intended: a peril- NATO—North Atlantic Treaty Organization ous Cold War nuclear arms race that pitted the U.S. and the Soviet Union against one another. UKIP—United Kingdom Independent Party Berlin blockade and airlift: An international crisis UN—United Nations in 1948–49 spurred by the Soviet Union’s decision to block rail, road and water communications, isolat- UNSC—United Nations Security Council ing West Berlin from the rest of Western Europe. In response, the U.S. and UK began to deliver food and USTR—Office of the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • The NPT and the Origins of NATO's Nuclear Sharing Arrangements
    The NPT and the Origins of NATO’s Nuclear Sharing Arrangements by William Alberque Head of Arms Control and Coordination Section, NATO NATO’s Enduring Commitment to the Non-Proliferation Treaty Vienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation At the Permanent Mission of Japan 5 May 2017 PRESENTATION OUTLINE I. The story ‐ Personal and historical II. Key findings ‐ How were NATO’s nuclear sharing arrangements addressed during negotiations? ‐ What were the other key issues to be resolved? III. The enduring relevance of the NPT Lunch Lecture VCDNP | 5 May 2017 2 The story of the NPT • Baruch Plan of 1946 • Irish Resolution 1958, adopted 20 December 1961 • Eighteen Nation Disarmament Committee (January 1962) ‐ 14 March 1962 to 26 August 1969 ‐ US Draft Treaty 17 August 1965 ‐ USSR Draft Treaty 24 September 1965 ‐ UN Resolution 2028(XX) 19 November 1965 ‐ US revised Draft Treaty 21 March 1966 ‐ US-USSR joint drafts 24 August 1967, 18 January 1968, 11 March 1968 ‐ Agreed by ENDC 14 March 1968 • NPT opened for signature 1 July 1968 Lunch Lecture VCDNP | 5 May 2017 The Cold War doesn’t stop for NPT negotiations Six-Day War President Kennedy US escalation in raises global assassinated Vietnam tensions Berlin Crisis and NOV 1963 MAR 1965 JUN 1967 the Wall AUG 1961 AUG 1968 Invasion of Czechoslovakia OCT 1962 OCT 1964 MAR 1966 Cuban Missile Premier Khrushchev France withdraws Crisis removed from office from NATO military China detonates its structure first atomic bomb Lunch Lecture VCDNP | 5 May 2017 4 A Researcher’s Best Friend: the public record Lunch Lecture VCDNP | 5 May 2017 A Researcher’s Best Friend 2: FRUS • The Foreign Relations of the United States ‐ Broken down by President, and then topic area ‐ https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments • The famous “Document 232” ‐ Letter From the Under Secretary of State (Katzenbach) to Secretary of Defense Clifford, Washington, April 10, 1968.
    [Show full text]
  • Atmospheric Nuclear Weapons Testing
    Battlefi eld of the Cold War The Nevada Test Site Volume I Atmospheric Nuclear Weapons Testing 1951 - 1963 United States Department of Energy Of related interest: Origins of the Nevada Test Site by Terrence R. Fehner and F. G. Gosling The Manhattan Project: Making the Atomic Bomb * by F. G. Gosling The United States Department of Energy: A Summary History, 1977 – 1994 * by Terrence R. Fehner and Jack M. Holl * Copies available from the U.S. Department of Energy 1000 Independence Ave. S.W., Washington, DC 20585 Attention: Offi ce of History and Heritage Resources Telephone: 301-903-5431 DOE/MA-0003 Terrence R. Fehner & F. G. Gosling Offi ce of History and Heritage Resources Executive Secretariat Offi ce of Management Department of Energy September 2006 Battlefi eld of the Cold War The Nevada Test Site Volume I Atmospheric Nuclear Weapons Testing 1951-1963 Volume II Underground Nuclear Weapons Testing 1957-1992 (projected) These volumes are a joint project of the Offi ce of History and Heritage Resources and the National Nuclear Security Administration. Acknowledgements Atmospheric Nuclear Weapons Testing, Volume I of Battlefi eld of the Cold War: The Nevada Test Site, was written in conjunction with the opening of the Atomic Testing Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada. The museum with its state-of-the-art facility is the culmination of a unique cooperative effort among cross-governmental, community, and private sector partners. The initial impetus was provided by the Nevada Test Site Historical Foundation, a group primarily consisting of former U.S. Department of Energy and Nevada Test Site federal and contractor employees.
    [Show full text]
  • Gordon, A. Lincoln – 1988
    The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project AMBASSADOR A. LINCOLN GORDON Interviewed by: Melbourne Spector Initial interview date: January 12, 1988 Copyright 1998 A ST TABLE OF CONTENTS Background 1 47 Conception of the Marshall Plan Teaching at Harvard University Tyler Wood War Production Board Baruch Plan European response to Marshall)s speech Robert Marjolin State Department, Creating the Marshall Plan 1 47-1 .2 European Coal Committee Mariam Capp European Emergency Committee for Europe European Coal rationing 0nterim Aid Package Congressional participation Secretary Marshall)s personality President Truman Paul Hoffman Averell Harriman Congressional opposition 1ondon2 England3 Chief of the Marshall Plan Mission 1 .2-1 .. Senator McCarthy Diplomatic rankings Walton Butterworth Robert Hartley Policy Planning Staff Need for special Mission William T. Batt Conversion to European 7NATO8 defense support Dollar shortage 1 Refugees West 9ermany economy Marshall Plan organi:ation and operations Communications arrangements with State Richard Bissell Use of Counterpart funds Problems of Missions) organi:ation Volume of funds Budget Bureau Program officers OECD Executive Director Robert Marjokin Jean Monnet Organi:ation for Economic Cooperation and Development 7OECD8 Organi:ation of Committees and Councils Protocol issues Averell Harriman)s influence 9ermany Mission re-organi:ation 1everage from economic aid Paris2 France3 Head of Marshall Plan Program Division 1 4 -1 .2 Averell Harriman Korean War European Payments Union State/Defense department tension Defense Secretary 1ouis Johnson European Defense Community 7EDC8 Council of NATO ambassadors Wisemen)s Committee Technical Assistance Program 7TCA8 National Advisory Committee on 0nternational Financial Agreements Breton Woods Agreement Office of the Director of Mutual Security Senator Otto Passman Military assistance to Europe 0ranian oil and Mossadegh China enters Korean War Elmer Stats Defense Production Agency 1ondon2 England, Chief of Marshall Plan Mission 1 .2-1 .
    [Show full text]
  • Russell's Anti-Communist Rhetoric Before and After Stalin's Death
    RUSSEL:rS ANTI-COMMUNIST RHETORIC BEFORE AND AFTER STALIN'S DEATH STEPHEN HAYHURST History / Copenhagen International School Copenhagen, Denmark 1100 communist regimes collapse in Eastern Europe, and the rhet­ oric of the Cold War is at last abandoned, it seems an appro­ A priate time to examine an aspect of Bertrand Russell's political life and thought which has not been as well documented as, for example, his activities in the First World War or the 1960s. In the decade following the end of the Second World War Russell could, with some justification, be accused of contributing to Cold War mis­ trust, and even of playing the role of a "Cold War Warrior". Between 1945 and 1953 not only was Russell, as he himself later admitted, well entrenched as part of the "Establishment", but he was also actively involved in denouncing Communism, Stalin, the Soviet Union, and at times even the Russian people. Russell's Cold War invective intruded into his private letters, newspaper and magazine articles, public lec­ tures and some of his books during this period. For example, What is Freedom? and What is Democracy?, whilst not the best remembered of Russell's books, are illustrative of his vehement hatred of Stalin's re­ gime, and are of especial interest because they underwent small but significant revisions after Stalin's death. This brief survey of Russell's anti-Stalinism is, by necessity, highly selective, and has intentionally focussed on some of Russell's more extreme statements. A much more comprehensive study would be necessary to analyze the overall signifi­ cance of Russell's anti-Stalinism.
    [Show full text]