Should NATO rely on tactical nuclear weapons to offset the Warsaw PactÕs conventional superiority?
¥Political constraints among the allies
¥Issues of authorization and control
¥Due to massively
increased casualties on a nuclear battlefield, more
rather than fewer conventional forces would be required
to carry out military objectives
¥Cost of maintaining nuclear infrastructure absorbs resources that could otherwise be used to achieve conventional parity with the Warsaw Pact
¥ÒSlippery slope:Ó use
of tactical nuclear weapons in war could lead to a
full-scale strategic nuclear exchange