By Praful Bidwai
Among the many dubious ideas that former United States President Ronald Reagan embraced, two were particularly dangerous. The first was that "a limited nuclear war" with the Soviet Union could be fought and won. The second held that the US could reliably secure itself against nuclear weapons by building Star Wars-style ballistic missile defence (BMD).
BMD would detect launches of the enemy's nuclear-tipped missiles using satellites and radars, and then intercept them during flight. This would not only take the sting out of a deadly threat; it would render the enemy's nuclear deterrent ineffectual. If the US took the lead in BMD. it would acquire supreme, unmatched power. |