The SALT Talks

The SALT Talks

1. The SALT talks accomplished little, but it was important to keep both parties talking.  Does the evidence of the 1970s and 1980s support this thesis?  Support your opinion with at least three examples.

U.S. Pres. Jimmy Carter and Soviet general secretary Leonid Brezhnev signed the SALT II treaty in Vienna. Interim Agreement and Protocol on the limitation of strategic offensive weapons. While the nuclear ban on the nuclear tests could have closed all the doors completely on one dimension between the U.S. and soviet arm activities, it had a little direct impact on slowing down the development of the new strategic systems. SALT treaty was meant to deal with the issue of the proliferation of nuclear. However, the issue is still rampant and can be evidentially outlined by the recent Chinese and French nuclear tests. Land‐based, missiles, “because of their potential vulnerability, and bombers, because of their high cost, have each been proposed for elimination. Though it is hardly likely that this will come about in the near future, having three equally powerful elements in the strategic forces—land‐based missiles, sub‐launched missiles, and bombers—will be difficult to support if a lasting spirit of détente develops”( Schelling, 2018)

2. Critics of “Star Wars” argued that an effective nuclear defense shield would have increased the dangers of nuclear war. How so?

The perfect antiballistic missile defense was beyond the reach of technology. It was just as tory and to trust the polls; the idea had popular appeal. Many Americans believed that this could build the Strategic Defense Initiative was the greatest triumph.  More so, if they could have the necessary resources, they could have gone ahead to build the missiles. Coming up with the SDI had its own technical challenges, such as erecting high-intensity lasers as well as the particle beams. Every single system under consideration had to improve its energy output by more than 100 times in order to be effective (McCoy, 2017). The claims to such technology were feasible only if given time for development. Modern technology is capable of coming up with such projects. By the 1980s, technology was a bit rudimentary. The point behind the project was a theoretical one and was focused on developing it into reality, which took time. While the project did not occur overnight, it was expensive.

3. During much of the 1970s, the Soviets became increasingly dependent on U.S. grain in order to feed their people. These exports were popular with American farmers but played a more ambiguous role in American efforts to control the Soviets. If you had been a presidential advisor for Presidents Ford and Carter, what economic strategy would you have recommended?

Since U.S. had a major market bargain controlling the supply of grain, I would recommend raising the prices on grain to the Soviet Union and limit quantity. Rising the price of the grain would have improved the economy of U.S. (McCoy, 2017). A more wealthy economy could have given the U.S. power to influence soviets both politically and economically. In most cases, the country that has improved economy can control the other. Additionally, given the fact that the U.S. was a monopoly for grain supply for the soviet countries as it could have reduced the quantity of the surplus. Reducing the quantity of the surplus leads to increased demand for the commodities that are not easily available. Thus, the soviet in this case could have taken a step to create loyalty to the U.S. Therefore, controlling the market could have influenced the direction of the conflict

4. The Soviet invasion and occupation of Afghanistan have been described as the Soviets’ Vietnam. Discuss at least three similarities and one dissimilarity between these conflicts.

Similarities

Both the Soviets and the Americans chose to withdraw their troops from Vietnam and Afghanistan. The Vietnam War was seen as a failure by the Americans, and the Soviet invasion marked the beginning of a disintegrating Soviet Union. Two guerilla forces, the Mujaheddin proved to be formidable opponents to the Soviets like the Viet Cong were to the Americans. Crippled the Economies of the Soviet Union and the United States. Both the Mujaheddin and the Viet Cong used guerilla tactics against the Soviets and the Americans (Leonard, Udoudom, & Bassey, 2019). The Soviets seemed to experience similar military scenarios that the Americans had in Vietnam. They used napalm, poison gas, and helicopter gunships but still could not defeat the Mujahideen, who used mainly old rifles but carried with them extensive knowledge of the terrain Feared the spread of Muslim fundamentalism. Afghanistan was bordering USSR, where Islam was a strong influence. Afghanistan was at the border of USSR security.  Didn’t want Afghanistan to be capitalist could lose face, communism version of the

Difference

The United States expanded the Vietnam War into countries throughout Southeast Asia, such as Laos and Cambodia, while the Soviets and the Afghans remained primarily in Afghanistan. Opposite of the Truman doctrine he wanted capitalist countries