Word: sdi
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...Part of the furor over Obama's decision results from the fact that ever since President Ronald Reagan launched his Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI, a.k.a. Star Wars) 26 years ago, the notion of a global missile shield has become an obsession for many of his ideological acolytes. They tend to view any retreat as surrendering to the forces of evil, even though Obama's decision was blessed by Defense Secretary Robert Gates - who had originally recommended the European scheme in 2006 while serving as Defense Secretary to President George W. Bush. In justifying the move, Gates and others cite intelligence...
...President Bush's decision to reduce the goals of the 'Star Wars' program from an impenetrable shield to a limited defense against missile attacks is a milestone in the government's slow rejection of Ronald Reagan's grandiose aims," the paper reported 18 years ago. That was back when SDI morphed into a scaled-down version dubbed Global Protection Against Limited Strikes (GPALS...
...latest Soviet offer in Geneva may force Reagan to resolve these disputes over the nature of SDI and its role in arms control. At a special session of the two delegations, Chief Soviet Negotiator Viktor Karpov presented proposals that made an explicit connection between reducing offensive weapons and limiting strategic defense programs. The plan amplifies an informal one the Soviets made last month that sought to set limits on America's SDI program through maintaining continued adherence to the ABM treaty. In making their offer, the Soviets have done precisely what U.S. officials have been wanting them...
Congress is involved in an intense tug-of-war with the Administration over SDI funding. The Administration is asking for $4.8 billion in SDI research money for 1987, an increase of 72% over this year's budget. No way, says a bipartisan group of 48 Senators who have signed a letter asking for a $2 billion cut in money for SDI, arguing that funding should be kept to "approximately 3% real growth." Some legislators are reluctant to fund SDI because they see it as the death knell of SALT II, the ABM pact and arms control in general. Aspin predicts...
...order to preserve funding for SDI, the Administration will have to determine more precisely what role Star Wars will play in the strategic balance. Is it an umbrella against Armageddon, an expensive set of exotic gadgetry to protect missile silos or merely a Buck Rogers fantasy? Could it be the ultimate bargaining chip to exchange for deep reductions in threatening missiles or the catalyst for an arms race beyond the fears of reason? Long before the scientists begin to perfect SDI's technologies, policymakers must grapple with these questions. The answers are essential to the future of arms control...