Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book is concerned with the future of the Western alliance and the development of the peace movement in Europe and—to an extent—in the United States. Both in Western Europe and in the United States, there was opposition to North Atlantic Treaty Organization from the very beginning. As opposed to US emphasis on strategic nuclear weapons, the European movements are more directly germane to security in Europe and to the future of the alliance. Last, members of Western peace movements frequently invoke the existence of a peace movement in the Communist bloc. Soviet support for the West European peace movement is natural. The Protestant churches of Northern Europe have been among the most active warners against a nuclear holocaust. Most West Europeans and Americans still support the continuation of the alliance as a matter of principle.