ABSTRACT
The nuclear debate can be traced to the concept of "strategic bombing" first postulated by Guilio Douhet in the 1920s. Throughout the postwar period, many of the major crises in American foreign and security policy have usually concerned nuclear weapons, or were at least indirectly triggered by nuclear strategic issues. The Cuban Missile Crisis highlighted the concentration of American foreign policymakers upon nuclear issues. The Castro regime, while clearly unfriendly to the US and hostile to American initiatives, only became a serious threat when nuclear-armed missiles were deployed in Cuba. The idea of accidental war is a recurring theme in both popular and serious discussion of nuclear weapons. In particular, weapon systems near the nuclear/conventional line have been viewed with suspicion. The decline in the number of weapons held in superpower inventories is also likely to encourage proliferation. Any discussion of the implications of nuclear weapons on American foreign policy must consider the scope of its existing nuclear commitments.
