ABSTRACT
To understand Soviet policies toward ballistic missile defense and the military uses of space, this chapter begins by considering the overall context in which the Soviets evaluate trends in military relations between the superpowers. For the Soviets, the dominant international fact of the 1980s has been the geopolitical resurgence of the United States and the decline of superpower détente. Although the greater assertiveness of the United States strikes many Western observers as an inevitable consequence of Soviet actions during the 1970s, it has perplexed Soviet policymakers. By the late 1970s Brezhnev's mix of military power, arms negotiations, and diplomacy appeared to be yielding major benefits. Based on a combination of cooperation and competition with the West, his dual-track formula for détente helped consolidate the USSR's standing as a military superpower and produced major geopolitical gains in Europe and the Third World.
