The Future of Missile Defense Research Paper by Coolpower

This paper discusses the concept of missile defense, ie. the idea that a defense missile can be used to shoot down an incoming ballistic missile and how the mere idea of this ability in the past threatened to add fuel to an ongoing arms race between the two then superpowers. It evaluates the Anti Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM) which was a result of an attempt to add some stability to a very dangerous and unstable Cold War. This paper examines the new challenges to that treaty, challenges which have ultimately left it a remnant of the past and the reasons why President Bush choose to leave the treaty. It attempts to understand the treaty's past, its present situation and the future of American Foreign Policy without its restriction. It analyzes the history and development of missile technology over the tears and the international threat it poses.