ABSTRACT
The soviet military thrust into Afghanistan, and therefore into the Persian Gulf region, is characterized by several features that give it a genuinely significant and historically unprecedented character. The Persian Gulf crisis is unique because no acceptable fallback positions exist in case of a major setback. A negative outcome in the Persian Gulf area would mean at best the neutralization of Western Europe, and more likely its transformation into a Soviet dependency. The challenge of the Persian Gulf is one that finds us in the uncomfortable and perilous stance of strategic parity, and that vastly complicates the nature of our response and makes our difficulties far greater. The inevitable consequence of a major Western setback in the Persian Gulf will be the destruction of the entire post-World War II American-built international system. The strategic balance has shifted dramatically and clearly in favor of the Soviet Union, and that is bound to have longer-range implications for the region.
