COUNCIL OF WAR COUNCIL OF WAR A HISTorY of THE JoinT ChiEFS of STaff 1942– 1991 By Steven L. Rearden Published for the Joint History Office Office of the Director, Joint Staff Joint Chiefs of Staff Washington, D.C. 2012 Opinions, conclusions, and recommendations expressed or implied within are solely those of the contributors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Defense Department or any other agency of the Federal Government. Cleared for public release; distribution unlimited. Portions of this book may be quoted or reprinted without permission, pro- vided that a standard source credit line is included. NDU Press would appreciate a courtesy copy of reprints or reviews. First printing, July 2012 Cover image: Meeting of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on November 22, 1949, in their conference room at the Pentagon. From left to right: Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, Chief of Naval Operations; General Omar N. Bradley, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff; General Hoyt S. Vandenberg, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff; and General J. Lawton Col- lins, U.S. Army Chief of Staff. Department of the Army photograph collection. Cover image: Meeting of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on November 22, 1949, in their conference room at the Pentagon. From left to right: Admiral Forrest P. Sherman, Chief of Naval Operations; General Omar N. Bradley, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff; General Hoyt S. Vandenberg, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff; and General J. Lawton Collins, U.S. Army Chief of Staff. Department of the Army photograph collection. NDU Press publications are sold by the U.S. Government Printing Office. For ordering information, call (202) 512-1800 or write to the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C. 20402. For GPO publications on-line, access its Web site at: http://bookstore.gpo.gov. Contents Foreword. .ix Preface . xi Chapter 1. THE WAR IN EUROPE ...........................................1 The Origins of Joint Planning. 2 The North Africa Decision and Its Impact ..........................9 The Second Front Debate and JCS Reorganization ................12 Preparing for Overlord ............................................... 15 Wartime Collaboration with the Soviet Union. 18 Chapter 2. THE ASIA-PacIFIC WAR AND THE BEGINNINGS OF PostwaR PLANNING. .29 Strategy and Command in the Pacific ..............................29 The China-Burma-India Theater ...................................33 Postwar Planning Begins ............................................38 Ending the War with Japan .........................................43 Dawn of the Atomic Age ...........................................46 Chapter 3. PEacETIME CHALLENGES ....................................59 Defense Policy in Transition ........................................61 Reorganization and Reform .......................................64 War Plans, Budgets, and the March Crisis of 1948 ..................69 The Defense Budget for FY 1950 ..................................76 Cover image: Meeting of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The Strategic Bombing Controversy ...............................81 on November 22, 1949, in their conference room at the Pentagon. From left to right: Admiral Forrest Chapter 4. MILITARIZING THE COLD WAR. .95 P. Sherman, Chief of Naval Operations; General Omar N. Bradley, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff; Pressures for Change ................................................95 General Hoyt S. Vandenberg, U.S. Air Force Chief The H-Bomb Decision and NSC 68. 98 of Staff; and General J. Lawton Collins, U.S. Army Chief of Staff. Department of the Army photograph Onset of the Korean War ..........................................102 collection. The Inch’on Operation. .105 Policy in Flux ......................................................108 Impact of the Chinese Intervention ............................... 111 MacArthur’s Dismissal .............................................113 Europe—First Again. 116 Chapter 5. EISEnhowER AND THE NEW LOOK ....................... 133 The 1953 Reorganization. .134 Ending the Korean War ............................................137 A New Strategy for the Cold War .................................140 Testing the New Look: Indochina .................................146 v Confrontation in the Taiwan Strait ................................149 The “New Approach” in Europe ..................................152 NATO’s Conventional Posture ....................................156 Curbing the Arms Race ...........................................158 Chapter 6. CHANGE AND CONTINUITY ................................173 Evolution of the Missile Program. .174 The Gaither Report ...............................................177 The “Missile Gap” and BMD Controversies .......................179 Reorganization and Reform, 1958–1960 ..........................183 Defense of the Middle East. .190 Cuba, Castro, and Communism ....................................196 Berlin Dangers. 199 Chapter 7. KENNEdy AND THE CRISIS PRESIDENCY ................211 The Bay of Pigs. .213 Berlin under Siege .................................................216 Laos ................................................................221 Origins of the Cuban Missile Crisis ...............................224 Showdown over Cuba .............................................228 Aftermath: The Nuclear Test Ban ..................................233 Chapter 8. THE MCNAMARA ERA ........................................245 The McNamara System ...........................................245 Reconfiguring the Strategic Force Posture ........................247 NATO and Flexible Response ....................................251 The Skybolt Affair .................................................253 Demise of the MLF ................................................255 A New NATO Strategy: MC 14/3 ................................258 The Damage Limitation Debate ...................................261 Sentinel and the Seeds of SALT ...................................267 Chapter 9. VIETNAM: GOING to WAR ...................................277 The Roots of American Involvement. 277 The Road to an American War ....................................281 The Gulf of Tonkin Incident and Its Aftermath. .284 Into the Quagmire .................................................292 Chapter 10. VIETNAM: RETREat AND WITHDRawal .................305 Stalemate ..........................................................305 Tet and Its Aftermath ..............................................310 Nixon, the JCS, and the Policy Process ............................313 vi Winding Down the War ...........................................316 Back to Airpower ..................................................321 The Christmas Bombing Campaign ...............................324 The Balance Sheet. 326 Chapter 11. DÉTENTE ........................................................335 SALT I .............................................................336 Shoring Up the Atlantic Alliance ..................................342 China: The Quasi-Alliance ........................................347 Deepening Involvement in the Middle East .......................351 Chapter 12. THE SEARCH FOR STRatEGIC StabILITY ...............365 The Peacetime “Total Force”. .365 Modernizing the Strategic Deterrent ..............................367 Targeting Doctrine Revised .......................................371 SALT II Begins ....................................................375 Vladivostok ........................................................378 Marking Time .....................................................381 Chapter 13. THE RETURN to CONFRontatION .....................391 Carter and the Joint Chiefs ........................................391 Strategic Forces and PD-59 ........................................394 SALT II. .397 NATO and the INF Controversy. .400 The Arc of Crisis ..................................................403 Rise of the Sandinistas .............................................407 Creation of the Rapid Deployment Force .........................408 The Iran Hostage Rescue Mission. 411 Chapter 14. THE REagan BUILDUP .......................................421 Reagan and the Military ...........................................421 Forces and Budgets ................................................425 Military Power and Foreign Policy ................................429 The Promise of Technology: SDI ..................................432 Arms Control: A New Agenda .....................................438 Chapter 15. A NEW RAPPROCHEMENT ..................................449 Debating JCS Reorganization .....................................449 The Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986 ..............................454 NATO Resurgent .................................................457 Gorbachev’s Impact ................................................459 Terrorism and the Confrontation with Libya ......................462 vii Showdown in Central America ....................................464 Tensions in the Persian Gulf .......................................467 Operation Earnest Will. 469 Chapter 16. ENDING THE COLD WAR .....................................479 Policy in Transition ................................................479 Powell’s Impact as Chairman ......................................481 The Base Force Plan ...............................................485 Operations in Panama .............................................489 The CFE Agreement ..............................................493