Word: luttwak
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...Edward Luttwak was not impressed. Said he: "The fact that they do not stress readiness as much as we do may say something about their idea of who will strike first; readiness is only important for the side being surprised...
...such potential crises, according to Luttwak, the U.S. may find that it does not "dare to use its nuclear weapons to offset Soviet advantages in conventional forces." As Luttwak imagined the scene, "Moscow could then say to the West, 'Gentlemen, we are superior in ground forces, we can take most of West Germany in 48 hours. You cannot checkmate that by strategic nuclear forces, for you no longer have superiority. Now we want to collect.' " And what will they collect? Luttwak speculated that while they would not actually occupy Western Europe, they would demand that it "show...
...long delays and cost overruns, is just one of them." Observed Hyland: "We no longer seem to know what we want the Navy to do: project power ashore far from the U.S. or keep the sea-lanes open. To do both may be too costly." In rare accord, Luttwak and Blechman emphasized the Navy's diplomatic and political value. Said Blechman: "The Navy makes our power known." Added Luttwak: "It's our only maneuver force...
...control of oil power is power itself--military power," in the immortal wordes of "Miles Ignotus" (Latin for unknown soldier), described by Harper's as a "Washington-based professor and defense consultant with intimate links to high-level US policy makers" and rumored to be the pseudonym for Edward Luttwak, a well-known conservative "defense" intellectual close to Washinton's defense and "intelligence community...
Generally, the agreement seems to pose no new strategic danger for either side. Its merit is that it seeks to place some kind of cap on nuclear development-even though that cap does not fit very tightly. Observes Edward Luttwak, a Pentagon strategist: "The Air Force and the Navy can keep building whatever they want." So, of course, can the Soviet forces. Indeed, as each side maneuvers for the strongest possible position within the new arms limits, pressures toward a multibillion-dollar race to improve weapons may prove irresistible. By 1985, when the projected pact would...