The Sixties Stalemate

Abstract

This chapter shows how the political stalemate that emerged in the 1960s remade the Atlantic alliance. By the end of that decade, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) had adopted a more graduated strategy, often known as flexible response, and carved out a political role as an alliance dedicated to more than deterring and, if needed, defending against Soviet aggression. The chapter cites the argument of allies that strong defenses could underwrite the search for political solutions to the most pressing geopolitical problems. It talks about the dramatic growth of Soviet forces that threatened to upend the alliance's strategy and erode confidence in the protection afforded by the United States. Through arms control negotiations, the United States and the Soviet Union could limit the costly arms race, but the terms of that agreement could easily create their own crisis of confidence within the alliance.