Foreign policy Political positions of Ronald Reagan

1 foreign policy

1.1 cold war
1.2 nuclear weapons
1.3 iran-iraq

foreign policy

cold war

ronald reagan served president during later part of cold war, era of political , ideological disagreement between united states , soviet union. reagan labeled u.s.s.r. evil empire consigned ash heap of history ; later predicted communism collapse. reversed policy of détente , massively built united states military. through it, ordered production of mx missile, lgm-118a peacekeeper, , implemented b-1 bomber program had been canceled carter administration. monitored deployment of pershing ii missile in west germany.

he proposed strategic defense initiative (sdi), defense project planned use ground , space-based missile defense systems protect united states attack. reagan believed defense shield make nuclear war impossible. reagan convinced soviet union defeated rather negotiated with.

nuclear weapons

according several scholars , reagan biographers, including paul lettow, john lewis gaddis, richard reeves, lou cannon, , reagan himself in autobiography, ronald reagan earnestly desired abolition of nuclear weapons. proposed gorbachev if missile shield built, nuclear weapons eliminated , missile shield technology shared, world better off.

paul lettow in particular has written reagan s opposition nuclear weapons started @ dawn of nuclear age , in december 1945, reagan prevented leading anti-nuclear rally in hollywood pressure warner brothers studio.

in autobiography, american life, reagan wrote, pentagon said @ least 150 million american lives lost in nuclear war soviet union—even if won. americans survived such war, couldn t imagine life like. planet poisoned survivors have no place live. if nuclear war did not mean extinction of mankind, mean end of civilization knew it. no 1 win nuclear war. yet long nuclear weapons in existence, there risks used, , once first nuclear weapon unleashed, knew end? dream, then, became world free of nuclear weapons.... 8 years president never let dream of nuclear-free world fade mind. reagan wrote believed mutually assured destruction policy formulated john kennedy morally wrong.

reagan , soviet leader mikhail gorbachev signed inf treaty in 1987 (and ratified in 1988), first in cold war history mandate destruction of entire class of nuclear weapons.

iran-iraq

originally neutral in iran–iraq war of 1979 1988, reagan administration began supporting iraq because iranian victory not serve interests of united states. in 1983, reagan issued national security decision directive memo, called heightened regional military cooperation defend oil facilities, measures improve u.s. military capabilities in persian gulf, directed secretaries of state , defense , chairman of joint chiefs of staff take appropriate measures respond tensions in area.