Abstract: No analysis of the prospects of Soviet power in the 1980s would be complete without a look at the way in which defence policy is made, for it is through the policy-making process that the Soviet Union determines the size and shape of her armed forces and decides how military power will be used. An examination of how policy is made will not tell us what the substance of policy will be, but it may help us to understand how the Soviet Union will react to the problems of the 1980s. This paper will look at the structure of the policy-making process, at the pressures and influences that come into play and at the way in which Soviet security concerns are formulated. It will ask whether what we know about the decision-making process makes it possible to determine which Western policies might influence Soviet decisions in the direction of restraint, co-operation and arms control.KeywordsArmed ForceParty LeaderMilitary PowerDefence PolicyGeneral StaffThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.
Publication Year: 1980
Publication Date: 1980-01-01
Language: en
Type: book-chapter
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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Cited By Count: 2
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