This weapon called peace: The doctrine and strategy of Soviet arms control and disarmament policy, 1945-1985

The strategy of Soviet arms-control and disarmament policy can be summarized in what we have termed the ratchet strategy of peaceful coexistence, in which a strategic advance is achieved through the tactics of multiple and indirect lines of approach, legitimized through invocation of "peaceful coexistence," and made permanent and irreversible both by means of treaties and agreements and by the ever-increasing military capability of the Soviet Union and her allies. The fundamental aspects of this strategy, moreover, have remained largely unchanged from the period immediately following World War II up to and including the present day.;Soviet strategic thought, as exemplified in their authoritative military-political texts, is based on the writings of V. I. Lenin; and both Lenin's strategic concepts and Soviet disarmament and arms-control strategy bear a striking resemblance to the precepts expressed by the 4th-century B.C. Chinese strategist Sun Tzu in The Art of War.;This dissertation examines not only the strategic content of this policy, but the doctrinal components of Soviet disarmament and arms-control strategy. Since the Soviet definition of "doctrine" is limited specifically to its military application, these doctrinal principles must be derived through examination of the following sources: authoritative political and strategic writings, records of negotiations and negotiating positions, treaties and agreements, data concerning weapons systems, and the relationship of these to observed political and strategic developments during the period under examination.;The doctrinal principles behind this strategy include the following: (1) the primary purpose of "peaceful coexistence" is the undermining of "imperialism," (2) any and all means are deemed permissible in the pursuit of "peace" strategy, and (3) the motive force for this strategy is Marxist-Leninist ideology, with the ultimate goal being the worldwide imposition of "socialism" in its Soviet variety.;Shifts in Soviet disarmament and arms-control policy are tactical rather than strategic in nature; and in keeping with the Soviet concept of the "correlation of forces" this strategy can be termed a time-fluid two-player zero-sum game.;As a result, Soviet arms-control and disarmament policy can legitimately be termed "a weapon called peace.".