ABSTRACT
Limited strategic war involves the danger of escalation, of gradual ascent to higher levels of violence and to an all-out war. But this danger seems less serious than the risk of escalation inherent in distributing tactical nuclear weapons to field units. In limited strategic war, the decision to use nuclear weapons is left exclusively in the hands of the head of state. Chances of controlling a limited war are, consequently, better in a strategic war. The weapons employed in limited strategic war are long-range strategic weapons, launched from bases on the adversaries' home soil. Strategic weapons can be hardened, thereby removing the incentive to preempt and to thereby increase the extent of the destruction. From the outset, this war is oriented precisely toward the possibility of limitation. In the conduct of a limited strategic war, there is a need for a unified command and control center for the employment of all forces.
