Free «President Eisenhowers Nuclear Policy» Essay Sample

Eisenhower, like Truman committed to the concept of containment and he committed to contain the expansionist ideas of the Soviet Union. However, unlike Truman, his containment strategies were moderate. His administration sought to portray the Soviet Union as an aggressor state because this was a more convincing policy to sell to American people and to the congress.

Though his administration was more inclined towards domestic politics and public opinions, his domestic popularity helped to shape his containment policies. Perhaps the greatest achievement of Eisenhower was the ability to reduce government spending and taxes. During his tenure, the government of the United States reduced all but only essential government expenditures. These cuts in government expenditures allowed his government to focus on strategic and tactical balance of power and the development of military nuclear arms. His cost effectiveness allowed the United States sufficient nuclear weapons to counter the nuclear weaponry of the Soviet Union.

Because Eisenhower pursued a nuclear deterrence strategy, he was forced to frequently blur the line between conventional warfare and nuclear warfare. In most cases he gave the Soviet Union the impression that he was willing to use nuclear arms anytime that he felt that the security of America was at stake. Therefore, the foreign policy of the Soviets had a different approach. However, his deterrent approach seems to have backfired as the soviets used the opportunity to develop more nuclear weapons than America.

One of the reasons why America decided to engage in cold war instead of physical war was because of the perceived power of the soviets nuclear arms. President Eisenhower should have concentrated on containing the development of nuclear weapons by the soviets instead of letting them to flourish.