ABSTRACT
A conventional war could break out in Europe for a number of reasons and in various ways. A border incident may grow into something bigger. So might unrest in a satellite State. There may be an attempt at politically corroding a NATO country and instigating civil war which an aggressor would then support militarily. A major conventional war could break out if the attacker had perfected anti-missile missiles or established nuclear supremacy by other means. Especially in the former case the attacker might prefer conventional to nuclear war in the hope of capturing a portion of the European industries intact. With the advent of nuclear devices the attacker’s advantage has become greater still because he has a choice of weapons: he can decide on whether to launch a conventional or a nuclear assault.
