President Reagan's arms build-up and the SDI plan raised the cost of competing, which pushed the USSR towards arms deals.
The USA had a bigger, more flexible economy and strong technology. President Ronald Reagan raised defence spending and took a tough line. Soviet leaders faced a hard choice. They could spend more to keep up, or seek deals to cut the cost. The arms race was not free for the USA either, which faced recession and budget pressures.
In 1983, Reagan announced the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI). It was research into shooting down nuclear missiles in flight. Soviet leaders feared it could make their own missiles useless. Matching it would cost a lot. SDI was only research, never a working shield. But it still added pressure.
Pressure was not the whole story. It mattered alongside Soviet economic weakness and the choices of Soviet leaders. Reagan also negotiated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. In 1987, they signed the INF Treaty, which removed a whole class of nuclear missiles.
- Reagan
- US president who raised defence spending.
- SDI, 1983
- Research into shooting down missiles; never a working shield.
- INF Treaty, 1987
- Removed a class of nuclear missiles.
Worked example: A plan can matter before it works
Explain how SDI could matter even though it never became a full shield.
- Soviet leaders fear SDI might one day block their missiles.
- Matching it would need costly research and new weapons.
- The Soviet economy is already weak, so talks become more attractive.
Watch out for this
SDI could not affect Soviet choices because it did not work.
Soviet leaders reacted to what SDI might become. The fear of its cost added pressure.
Check your understanding
Why did SDI worry Soviet leaders?
- It was already a working shield over the USA.
- It might weaken their missiles and would be very costly to match.
- It forced the USSR to leave the Warsaw Pact.