ABSTRACT
In the general euphoria generated by the antiballistic missile Treaty, arms control, based on the inescapable vulnerability of national populations to second-strike destruction, was a far more widely appealing method of mitigating the nuclear dilemma than moderating the costs of the failure of deterrence. Strongly critical of the strategic arms agreements and coming to power with a mandate to restore US nuclear strength, the administration was the haven and hope for leading maximalists. It came into office deploring the whole process of arms control as previously conducted and resolved not to resume the process until the military balance had been restored and there was evidence of Soviet good behavior in the Third World and elsewhere. President Reagan's revival of arms control began when the new administration inherited the position of its predecessor on the deployment of Intermediate-range nuclear forces missiles in Europe.
