Economic Constraints on U.S. National Security Spending Reasons and Responses

The descent of the Soviet economy and the dangerous expansion of Moscow’s “economic dimension of security vulnerability” during the last three decades have culminated in pressure for a reduction in Soviet defense spending over the transcentury period. Furthermore, of all the plausible Soviet threat futures, in only one could Moscow enjoy a vigorous and durable national defense expansion, and the prospects for this future seem remote. First, the Soviet Union would have to succeed in the implementation of its interim economic program, then follow that with successful radical perestroika, and finally over this decade-long process undergo no transformation in its core values.