ABSTRACT
The Sputnik era saw ideas about Western nuclear strategy enter a period of extended flux. For British policymakers working in the post-Suez climate there were divided attitudes as to whether Britain's growing strategic nuclear force should be considered merely an adjunct to United States (US) nuclear capabilities, or whether it should have the ability to operate in an independent fashion. The most pressing requirement was to give additional substance to the US nuclear guarantee to Western Europe and to offer the means to certain NATO members to defend themselves with the most modern weapons available. Members of Congress remained wary of British security standards and the dangers that a liberal approach to exchanges would encourage nuclear proliferation in other powers. Party considerations also came into play: President Eisenhower led a Republican administration but he faced Democrat majorities in both houses of Congress, with leadership of the JCAE therefore held in the hands of the Democratic Party.
