American Lake: Nuclear Peril in the Pacific

by Peter Hayes, Walden Bello, Lyuba Zarsky

PART III: EPILOGUE: DISCUSSES THE PRESENT AND FUTURE ROLES OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND IN TAHEIR AMERICAN LAKE. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0140093966
• ISBN13: 9780140093964
• Release Date: April 1987
• Publisher: Penguin Group
• Length: 529 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.

Customer Reviews

The Pacific Basin has become the American and Soviet Lake

The Soviet push in Asia is bleak. The U.S military push in the Pacific reflects the growing political and economic importance in the Pacific Basin. In 1985 the U.S spent $45 billion to keep American forces in the Pacific Basin and more money will flow out of Europe conventional forces into Asia. Europe was the focal point of the Manifest Destiny established by Roosevelt, however, the vision of General Douglas MacArther turned the focal point to the far east with his Offshore Island parameter; a line of defense extending through a chain of islands. The island hooping scheme suggested minimum position with maximum deterance potential. Air power was seen to be the key to control of the main island and atomic weapons the choice for deterring the Chinese communist from invading this region. For example, the six U.S carrier battle groups posed a serious threat from the west with the U.S deploying nuclear weapons to the theatre region: Tomahawks with a 2,500 km range capable of shore line targets in enemy terroritory and the Trident I, totally 24 missiles with a 240 warhead yield and a strike distance of 7700 km with the capacity to strike deep within enemy territory. The New militarism vision is too "rather than seek to modify Soviet behavior, the West should assist those forces within communist block which are working for change of the system." Reagan doctrine suggests in there could be a nuclear exchange without escalating the conflict into a a bigger war. Reagan's doctrine limit nuclear warfare to a theater region and once engaged diplomatically terminated ending the conflict quickly, minimal escalation, but necessary to protect the interests of the United States. Reagan sought to regain American war fighting supremcy building forces in Europe and the Pacific. Reagan's goals were to 1. obtain nuclear superiority 2. upgrade U.S capacity to intervene in third world forces which challenge the balance of power status. As indicated by the 300,000 Rapid Deployment Force build up extending to assist in the Perian Gulf, Southwest Asia, and East Africa. 3. Prepare U.S forces to wage a protract war against the Soviets. In 1984 the Lehman Doctrine set the stage for engagement policy against Soviet aggression. The foremost point was gaining Maritime supremcy. This goal resulted in a significant increase in aircraft carriers going from 12 to 15 by 1990 and was consider the best weapon for offensive operations. Aircraft carriers were covenanted because they were versatile, could survive all but direct nuclear hits, and sufferred few political constraints. The aircraft carrier was the most secure storage site for nuclear weapons. The Lehman Doctrine was both offensive in orientation and offensive in its suggested use of force. It was suggested that in a conflict against Soviet aggression the U.S would target soviet fleets, coastal installations, inner areas of industry, and threaten the potential adversary in the most secure areas. The usage