ABSTRACT
West European members of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation have a number of possible interests in the revival of activity in the field of anti-ballistic missiles (ABMs). In terms of the analysis of US strategic doctrine it would tend to support a perception of Washington’s underlying indifference to the fate of Europe. While the rest of Europe may assess a new ‘ABM race’ in these broad political terms, Britain and France must consider its effects on their own military planning. The sort of transformed strategic relationship that might be brought about by an effective anti-Soviet ABM system could appear promising as well as dangerous. The fact that the Soviet ABM system might negate the European nuclear forces was one of the few things that might have commended it to Washington. Either way the severity of the political reactions to a new ABM race would probably far outweigh the actual shifts in military relationships that could eventually be achieved.
