When President Ronald Reagan signed National Security Decision Directive 75 (NSDD 75) in January 1983, he started the process of rolling back the Soviet Union which he had long espoused. NSDD 75 would go beyond the policy of containment of the Soviet Union that the U.S. had held since 1946.
NSDD 75, drafted by Reagan's National Security Council, had three basic tenets. One, to pressure the Soviet Union externally with a military might and geographic positioning. Two, to exert internal pressure with an economic policy that moved the U.S.S.R. toward "a more pluralistic political and economic system in which the power of the privileged ruling elite is gradually reduced." Three, engage the Soviet Union in negotiations that exploited any gains achieved by the first two objectives.
"Deteriorating military posture" was something of an understatement. A decade earlier, the U.S. had left Vietnam after its failed venture to prevent that country from going Communist. In 1975, just after South Vietnam fell to the Communist North, U.S. Marines were barely able to rescue the crew of the Mayaguez who had been captured by Cambodians of the Khmer Rouge. In 1979, an American military expedition failed to rescue Americans whom Islamic fundamentalists had taken hostage at the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran.
True to the directive, Reagan presided over the largest peacetime military buildup in U.S. history. By 1985, military spending had jumped from $142 billion a year to $286 billion a year. That included updates of the M1 Abrams tank, stealth fighter and bomber production, and updates of Cruise missiles. The era also saw the nation's military branches acquiring higher quality recruits than in the immediate post-Vietnam days, and they began focusing on tactical studies that had been all but abandoned in the 1960s.
In economic policy, NSDD 75 endeavored to:
The directive suggested that "A continuing dialogue with the Soviets at Foreign Minister level facilitates necessary diplomatic communication with the Soviet leadership and helps to maintain Allied understanding and support for U.S. approach to East-West relations. A summit between President Reagan and his Soviet counterpart might promise similarly beneficial results." Reagan held a series of summit meetings with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, first in Geneva, Switzerland, then in Reykjavik, Iceland, that paved the way to new openness between their countries.
Finally, NSDD 75 encouraged a reaffirmation of basic American tenets to underscore its goals. "U.S. policy must have an ideological thrust which clearly affirms the superiority of U.S. and Western values of individual dignity and freedom, a free press, free trade unions, free enterprise, and political democracy over the repressive features of Soviet Communism," the document states.
In countless speeches and appearances, Reagan stressed just that. Dressed in blue suit, white shirt, and red tie -- with his perennial American flag lapel pin -- Reagan was the embodiment of NSDD 75. In his hands, the document became one of the true milestones of the Cold War between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R.
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NSDD 75, drafted by Reagan's National Security Council, had three basic tenets. One, to pressure the Soviet Union externally with a military might and geographic positioning. Two, to exert internal pressure with an economic policy that moved the U.S.S.R. toward "a more pluralistic political and economic system in which the power of the privileged ruling elite is gradually reduced." Three, engage the Soviet Union in negotiations that exploited any gains achieved by the first two objectives.
Military Strength
Much of NSDD 75 was based on American military strength, which, in 1983, needed a great deal of repair. "The U.S. must modernize its military forces - both nuclear and conventional - so that Soviet leaders perceive that the U.S. is determined never to accept a second place or a deteriorating military posture," NSDD 75 states."Deteriorating military posture" was something of an understatement. A decade earlier, the U.S. had left Vietnam after its failed venture to prevent that country from going Communist. In 1975, just after South Vietnam fell to the Communist North, U.S. Marines were barely able to rescue the crew of the Mayaguez who had been captured by Cambodians of the Khmer Rouge. In 1979, an American military expedition failed to rescue Americans whom Islamic fundamentalists had taken hostage at the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran.
True to the directive, Reagan presided over the largest peacetime military buildup in U.S. history. By 1985, military spending had jumped from $142 billion a year to $286 billion a year. That included updates of the M1 Abrams tank, stealth fighter and bomber production, and updates of Cruise missiles. The era also saw the nation's military branches acquiring higher quality recruits than in the immediate post-Vietnam days, and they began focusing on tactical studies that had been all but abandoned in the 1960s.
In economic policy, NSDD 75 endeavored to:
- "Ensure that East-West economic relations do not facilitate the Soviet military buildup. This requires prevention of the transfer of technology and equipment that would make a substantial contribution directly or indirectly to Soviet military power."
- "Avoid subsidizing the Soviet economy or unduly easing the burden of Soviet resources allocation decisions, so as not to dilute pressures for structural change in the Soviet system."
- "Minimize the potential for Soviet exercise of reverse leverage on Western countries based on trade, energy supply, and financial relationships."
- "Permit mutual beneficial trade - without Western subsidization or the creation of Western dependence - with the USSR in non-strategic areas, such as grains."
The directive suggested that "A continuing dialogue with the Soviets at Foreign Minister level facilitates necessary diplomatic communication with the Soviet leadership and helps to maintain Allied understanding and support for U.S. approach to East-West relations. A summit between President Reagan and his Soviet counterpart might promise similarly beneficial results." Reagan held a series of summit meetings with Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, first in Geneva, Switzerland, then in Reykjavik, Iceland, that paved the way to new openness between their countries.
Finally, NSDD 75 encouraged a reaffirmation of basic American tenets to underscore its goals. "U.S. policy must have an ideological thrust which clearly affirms the superiority of U.S. and Western values of individual dignity and freedom, a free press, free trade unions, free enterprise, and political democracy over the repressive features of Soviet Communism," the document states.
In countless speeches and appearances, Reagan stressed just that. Dressed in blue suit, white shirt, and red tie -- with his perennial American flag lapel pin -- Reagan was the embodiment of NSDD 75. In his hands, the document became one of the true milestones of the Cold War between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R.
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