A missile is launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility to be intercepted as part of a Missile Defense Agency test in Kaui, Hawaii, on Nov. 6, 2007. U.S. Navy via Getty Images
The United States’ outdated nuclear deterrence policy is hindering the country’s missile defense program, constraining it to a “limited missile defense” strategy. Consequently, essential missile defense initiatives are overshadowed by competing security priorities, gradual improvements, and insufficient funding, leaving the United States vulnerable to advancing conventional and nuclear missile threats. By adhering to inadequate defense strategies and outdated deterrence doctrines, the United States is impairing its capacity to develop and deploy effective missile defense systems, putting the homeland at risk from escalating modern threats.
Nuclear Deterrence
The foundation of nuclear deterrence is mutual assured destruction (MAD). This principle posits that if one superpower were to launch a nuclear attack, it would trigger an overwhelming nuclear counterattack, resulting in the annihilation of both the attacker and the defender. Following World War II and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the strategic purpose of war shifted. It became less about winning conflicts and more about preventing them. The prominent American nuclear strategist Bernard Brodie stated in 1978: “From now on, [our military forces’] chief purpose must be to avert them [wars]. It can have almost no other useful purpose.”
Don McGregor
Author
Major General Don McGregor (USAF ret.) is a combat veteran and an F-16 fighter pilot. While serving as a General Officer in the Pentagon, he was the National Guard Director of Strategy, Policy, Plans, and International Affairs, advising a four-star Joint Chiefs of Staff member. He was the lead liaison between the Council of Governors and the Secretary of Defense and administered the Department of Defense’s premier international affairs program, with over 80 global partnerships. He has held various operational command and director positions across the National Guard and military commands. Major General McGregor is an expert in defense strategy, policy, planning, and global security and is well-regarded for his expertise in the use of military forces to support federal agencies. He holds a master’s degree in Diplomacy and International Conflict Resolution from Norwich University.
