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Tag Archives: cold war
Risky Business
Even though the Cold War is supposed to have ended, the US and Russia still test each other’s air defenses. How much risk is there in such actions? More than one might think. Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged 9/11, cold war, martin hellman, nuclear risk, nuclear war, russia, Russian bombers, stanford
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Poking the Russian Bear: A New Cold War?
The Jackson-Vanik Amendment and the Magnitsky Bill are almost unknown in this country, but are frequently cited in Russia as proof that the US is stuck in a Cold War mentality. NYU Russian Studies Prof. Stephen Cohen cites these issues as key elements in what he calls “America’s New Cold War With Russia.” Here’s a quick, simplified time line: Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged cold war, Dima Yakovlev, Jackson-Vanik, Magnitsky, martin hellman, nuclear deterrence, nuclear risk, nuclear weapons, stanford
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Poking the Russian Bear – Again
There have been some important new developments on the Jackson-Vanik Amendment, which has an impact on nuclear risk. Most Americans don’t even know that this 1974 relic of the Cold War even exists, but it is frequently cited in the … Continue reading
JFK’s Airstrike Speech
How would the Cuban Missile Crisis have played out if President Kennedy, instead of a naval blockade, had ordered air strikes to destroy the missiles, followed by an invasion of Cuba? Would I be here to write this post, or you to read it? Continue reading
How Logical is Nuclear Deterrence? Part 2
Deterrence’s demand for irrationality is spelled out clearly in a 1995 USSTRATCOM report, “Essentials of Post-Cold War Deterrence”: Because of the value that comes from the ambiguity of what the US may do to an adversary if the acts we … Continue reading
An Incredible Credible Deterrent
Much is made of the need for our nuclear deterrent to be credible. Otherwise, it would be useless. An exchange on September 16, 1980, in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has much to say about that quest: Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged cold war, Harold Brown, John Glenn, martin hellman, nuclear deterrence, nuclear risk, nuclear war, nuclear weapons, PD59, stanford
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Isn’t the Cold War Over?
Most people justify their complacency about the world’s 20,000 nuclear weapons by noting that the Cold War is over. But, the more I study Russian-American relations, the more potential I see for a misunderstanding to escalate into a crisis, and the more concerned I become about the world’s nuclear complacency. I sometimes feel like a German Jew in the early 1930′s who has read Mein Kampf and vainly tries to alert his compatriots to the need to take action before it’s too late. Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged cold war, Hellman, missile defense, nuclear risk, nuclear weapons, stanford, stratfor
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Reigniting the Cold War
In a recent column, conservative columnist Patrick Buchanan wrote: Is the Senate trying to reignite the Cold War? If so, it is going about it the right way. Before departing for a five-week vacation, the Senate voted to declare Abkhazia … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Abkhazia, cold war, georgia, martin hellman, nuclear risk, Ossetia, Patrick Bucanan, SR 175
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Ghost of Jackson-Vanik Alive and Well in Moscow
As noted in a previous post on this blog, the 1974 Jackson-Vanik Amendment haunts Russian-American relations. Designed to punish the Soviet Union for its lack of free emigration, it still applies to Russia even though that nation has relatively liberal emigration policies. While no longer needed, keeping it on the books hurts us in many ways. Most notably, for reasons explained in that earlier post, it hampers our nuclear nonproliferation efforts relative to Iran. Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged cold war, iran, Jackson-Vanik, nuclear proliferation, russia
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