A BIG DECISION ON ANTI-MISSILES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP70B00338R000300100112-0
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 12, 2006
• Sequence Number: 112
• Publication Date: September 15, 1967
• Content Type: NSPR

C~si t~
Approved For Release 2006/01/30 : CIA-RDP70B00338R000300100112-0
y EARLY IN JANUARY the Joint Chiefs
4 BL I)ee lion r made their argument for starting at
~" a once on a full anti-ballistic missile
j'~ e defense system. In the House Armed
?n Anti-Missiles p Services Committee the JCS chairman,
J~1L Y Gen. Earle G. Wheeler, had an audience
i- already sympathetically attuned.
By Marquis Childs e In his posture statement at the start
t of the year McNamara made a power-
United Features 6~naicates, Inc. construction of an ABM system. Pub-
AMOMENTOUS DECISION is about - He argued that America's nuclear capa-
fabe taken, with :consequences reacbhing bility was so great that, it could never
far into an unforeseeable future. All be crippled by a Soviet first strike. As
the signs indicate the Administration is double insurance he proposed to in-
about to give the go-ahead to construe- crease the capability, even though it was
tion of an anti: ballistic missile system. put at anywhere from two to four times
How extensive the system will be is that of the Soviet Union. The case of
still in the discussion stage. It is likely the brilliant logician was, in short, that
to be a beginning phase, intended as a the billions for an ABM would be
barrier against Red Chinese nuclear thrown down the drain. In private he'
warheads in the early '70s. The price was even more emphatic than before
tag on such a limited ABM system has congressional committees.
been put at $10 billion. But, like all But pressures began to mount. The
initial Pentagon price tags, that is, only Southerners who dominate the military
a rough guess and it could be twice committees in the Senate and House
amount. An to that stop op wa a all-ouads system built ? came down on the side of the JCS. If
from the Soviet the Soviets were going ahead, said Sen.
Union would uld cost cost not less than $30 bit- Richard Russell, then the United States
lion and probably much more. What should not wait. It was part of McNa-
this would do to the defense budget- mara's argument that even without a
and to ohat the n r needeedf for more and m nddmoorere standoff agreement with Moscow there
taxes hardly needs expounding. uwould be no reason to proceed, since an
American second strike could get
military-
Here, along with the rth V etnam, is through any defense. From the military-
another and es in North Vietnam, in- industrial complex, too, came pressures..
another and gap more striking in- An extraordinary advertisement by an
by Secretary civilian o au- investment firm listed 28 companies
thorit of the represented between
Defense thorny Robert S. rt SS. McNamara and and the e that "could profit handsomely" if a full-
solid phalanx of the military speaking scale More ABM Mc were were installed.
nstalled has modi-
through the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Mc- lied his stand. He has said that a limited a Namara making what is billed as e ABM designed against China's potential
most important speech on the whole might be useful. China's success in
nar dday issue in San s opportunity srunMot to - exploding a hydrogen bomb consider-
ay. . HHe could use this ably in advance of most estimates may
indicate the ABM decision, have had something to do with this.
For months, both publicly and private- cva
ly, Moscow has been prodded to begin ON THE .BASIC ISSUE, however, of
talks aimed at an agreement to forgo the usefulness of an ABM system the
construction of an ABM system. Pub-
lic hints have come from Administra- dnderethe nc Joint vieChiefs w betwe
is enaMcNamara It is as
tion spokesmen and from Senators be-
lieved to have been inspired by the clear as the difference over the bombing
White House that Washington cannot of targets such as the port of Haiphong.
ate
sub of b oee the menthe
wait much longer and particularly since McN Prepared ecs contended
the Soviets were known to be installing a risk of enlarging the war Was too great.
sabot parts of a Llewellyn. system. In Thompson, Moscow , who Amore- re- The committee in a summary report
turne~l for a second tour of duty at the called for "closing he, porthe t dof Hai-
enials
urging of the President with the hope p g?
of checkmating a new round in the and the beexplanations, poverhe disagreement
nuclear arms race, has been pushing cannot
for talks. So far as is known, the re- For the long future the issue of the
sponse is not so much nyet as wait awhile ABM may be far more important. And whether ary
and let's talk about your escalation of hthe as dues question insbhe door with a military
the war in Vietnam. ABM the pressure will not eventually
~''-repel the full system with its. fantastic
cost.
Approved For Release 2006/01/30 : CIA-RDP70B00338R000300100112-0