An interesting full length documentary by Channel 4 about how close the west and the Soviet Union came to nuclear Armageddon in 1983. Reagan’s rhetoric, $1 trillion in defense spending, Pershing II missiles, the new cruise missiles, a breakdown in Soviet detection technology (high altitude clouds set off Soviet early warning satellites), the American invasion of Grenada, a NATO communication war game, paranoia over the Nazi attack 1941 happening all over again, lack of understanding between both sides about each other (and a shortage of double agents) all brought both sides really close to nuclear war in 1983.
It mentions the SIOP which is the integrated plan for fighting a nuclear war. In Reagan’s version, the expectation was that America would lost 150 million dead at a minimum.
awesome documentary. thanks for posting it. I highly reccommend “The Fog of War”, which details how close the US/Russia came during the Cuban Missile Crisis to all out war….I believe it all came down to one Russian sub commander who defined an order….scary, scary, stuff.