The Cold War: Politics of European Disarmament (1980s)

Figure 1.--Nuclear disarment Ban the Bomb protests swept Western Europe during the 1980s aimed at America local supporters of a strong NATO military defense,. There were also demonstrations in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, but they were also aimed at Western not Soviet disarmament. Meanwhile what occurred behind the Iron Curtain was a steady Soviet buildup of nuclear and conventioinal build up. While Communist priopaganda portrayed America and NATO as militaristic, but this is not a scene from West Germany. Scenes like this were in fact common throughout the suposedly peace-loving East Bloc. Here East German soldiers in the 1980s are introducuing 6-year olds to automatic weapons. Put your cursor on the image to see the rest of this East German training scene.

The United States through NATO deployed the Pershing II Intermediate Range Balistic Missiles (IRBMs) in West Germany during the 1980s. It was a response the Soviet SS-20s (1976). Even so the deployment was controversial. Some Europeans believed that the American nuclear shield over West Germany was a bluff and that America would never endanger its own cities by resonding to a Soviet invasion of Western Europe with a nuclear response. While some Europeans felt safer with the Pershing IIs deployed in Europe, others did not. As European fear of the Soviets subsided in the 1970s, many Europeans began to fear nuclear weapons more than a Soviet invasion. Ban the Bomb protests began to attract rising support, especially among the young, idealistic generation with no memory of the Soviet threat following World War II. The Soviets and the Western Communist Parties commanded by Moscow strongly supported this movement. The Soviet goal was Western disarmament--not global disarmament. They wanted Western arms reductions, not mutual reductions. There were disarmament marches in Eastern Europe, but their demands were for the West to disarm, not the Soviet Union. America and its NATO allies followed a steady Soviet nuclear buildup. During the height of the Ban the Bomb movement in Western Europe, the Soviets deployed a new generation of mobile SS-20 missiles. This was an especially provocative step because their mobility made them difficult to detect and monitor. This increased the potential danger of a Soviet first strike. There was no resonse from the Carter Administration to Soviet SS-20 deployment. Finally with the election of President Reagan, the United States and NATO responsedby beginning to replace the outdated Pershing IA with the next generation Pershing II in Germany. The response was vocal public opposition throughout Europe, including some of the largest and most volitile Ban the Bomb demonstrations ever held. President Reagan and Chancellor Kohl were villified by the protestors who ignored the Soviet SS-20s. This proved, however, to be the beginning of the end of the nuclear arms race. Not because of the Ban the Bomb movement, but because Reagan and Kohl stood up to the protestors. The Soviet SS-20 deployment had been costly. Largely unknown at the time was extent of the Soviet economic problems. Thus despite the substantial cost of the SS-20 deployment, the only result for the Sovirts was having to face a new generation of American missles--putting more Soviet cities in danger than had been the case earlier. Soviet leaders finally concluded that further development of nuclear weapons to achieve superority ober the West was fruitless and self-defeating. It was the Sooviet economy that was crunbling under the cost, nit the Soviet economy. Thus the Pershing II deployment brought the Soviets to the negotiating table. After the Pershing II deployment, Soviet negotiators began to talk seriously about real reductions in nuclear weapons. It also caused the Soviets for the first time to turn away from the hardliners and put in office Miklail Gorbechev with radical new ideas about reforning the Soviet system.

Salt Treaty (1972)

The Sovit Union made massive investments in building more and karger nuclear weapons and ICBMs. Finallywhen it became clear tht the United States was going to match them, they agreed to negotiate an armms treaty. It was part of what became known as Détente. The cornerstone of Détente was the Strategic Arms Limitation Treary (SALT). The SALT I negotiations began publically (early-1970). At the same time secret talks began with the Chinese. An Nixon was also attempting to Vietnamize the Vietnam War. The goal was to withdraw American combat troops and replacing them with South Vietnamese troops. To pressure the North Vietnamese, Nixon intensified the conflict by bombing Coomunist forces in Cambodia (April 1970). The target was North Vietnamese supply lines and Khmer Rouge guerillas supporyting them. The Chinese were publicly outraged and privately cancelled the next round of talks. Some Chinese leaders saw the advantages of a rapprochement. An internal struggle within the Chinese Central Committee commenced with the more moderate elements favoring the developing reltiinship with the United States prevailing. The horrors of the Cultural Revolution was an important factor here. The Sino-American contacts were conducted in secret, but the Soviets were well informed about the developing shift in Chinese policy. And it must have affected their SALT negtiations, although to what extent is difficult to tell. Nixon and Brezhnev signed agreements in Moscow--SALT I (May 22). The Treaty curbed the arms race for the first time, far beyonf the Test Ban Treaty. This was followed by the signing of the Basic Principles of Relations between the United States and the U.S.S.R. (May 26). The text agreement called for peaceful co-existence, the avoidance of military confrontations, and no claims of spheres of influence. The later was more difficult to define.

European Opinion

The United States through NATO deployed the Pershing II Intermediate Range Balistic Missiles (IRBMs) in West Germany during the 1980s. It was a response the Soviet SS-20s (1976). Even so the deployment was controversial. Even so the deployment was controversial. Some Europeans believed that the American nuclear shield over West Germany was a bluff and that America would never endanger its own cities by resonding to a Soviet invasion of Western Europe with a nuclear response. While some Europeans felt safer with the Pershing IIs deployed in Europe, others did not. As European fear of the Soviets subsided in the 1970s, many Europeans began to fear nuclear weapons more than a Soviet invasion.

Disarmament Protests

Ban the Bomb protests began to attract rising support, especially among the young, idealistic generation with no memory of the Soviet threat following World War II. A generation stirred up by the American war in Vietnam. Many did not see much difference between America and the Sovuet Union. The Soviets and the Western Communist Parties commanded by Moscow strongly supported this movement. The Soviet goal was Western disarmament--not global disarmament. They wanted Western arms reductions, not mutual reductions. There were disarmament marches in Eastern Europe, but their demands were for the West to disarm, not the Soviet Union. America and its NATO allies followed a steady Soviet nuclear buildup.

IRBM Confrontation

During the height of the Ban the Bomb movement in Western Europe, the Soviets lauced a new arms program aimed at gaining superiority in Europe. They began deploying a new generation of mobile SS-20 missiles. This was an especially provocative step because their mobility made them difficult to detect and monitor. This increased the potential danger of a Soviet first strike. The Soviets began the deployment (1976). These advanced ne missles gave the Soviets nuclear superiority in Europe. The vocal disarmament movement in Western Europe did not respond. There was also no resonse from the American Carter Administration to Soviet SS-20 deployment. Finally with the election of President Reagan, the United States and NATO responsed by beginning to replace the outdated Pershing IA with the next generation Pershing II in Germany. The Soviets were outraged. Apparently they believed that they had a right to modernozetheir weaponty, the Americans did not.

Widespread Protest

The response was vocal public opposition throughout Europe, including some of the largest and most volitile Ban the Bomb demonstrations ever held. Helmut Koln became chncellor in the middle of this IRBM controversy. President Reagan and Chancellor Kohl were villified by the protestors who ignored the Soviet SS-20s.

Impact

The IRBM confrontation proved to be the beginning of the end of the nuclear arms race. Not because of the Ban the Bomb movement, but because Reagan and Kohl stood up to the protestors. The Soviet SS-20 deployment had been costly. Largely unknown at the time was extent of the Soviet economic problems. Thus despite the substantial cost of the SS-20 deployment, the only result for the Sovirts was having to face a new generation of American missles--putting more Soviet cities in danger than had been the case earlier. Soviet leaders finally concluded that further development of nuclear weapons to achieve superority ober the West was fruitless and self-defeating. It was the Sooviet economy that was crunbling under the cost, nit the Soviet economy. Thus the Pershing II deployment brought the Soviets to the negotiating table. After the Pershing II deployment, Soviet negotiators began to talk seriously about real reductions in nuclear weapons. It also caused the Soviets for the first time to turn away from the hardliners and put in office Miklail Gorbechov with radical new ideas about reforning the Soviet system. Within only a few years, not only did the Berlin Wall come down (1989), but the Soviet Union imploded (1981).

Sources

Created: 6:26 AM 2/6/2011
Last updated: 6:26 AM 2/6/2011