The decision to accelerate is essentially a political decision. involving an assessment. first. of the probabilities of an emergency with the Russians occurring. and even more fundamentally. of whether or not it is in the national interest to encourage detente with the Soviet Union. If we do not favor d6tente and wish to speed up the arms race. then we should build the Trident as soon as possible. as recommended by the admirals and others on this floor. The signal we send Moscow. by speeding up the arms race. is that detente is offoff at least until the Russians give in to our demand that they change their emigration policy regarding their Jewish citizens and. as some put it. open up their society. something which is most unlikely to happen. It is inconceivable to me why anyone is really against a dtente with the Russians. but apparently there are people who believe it is either impossible or undesirable. I believe it is very much against the interest of the United States to prevent detente and to prevent the cessation of the armsrace.
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emigration