Assumptions

Britain's forthcoming defense program, accenting science and air power, and de-emphasizing army and navy, is based on the following official assumptions, the Manchester Guardian reported last week:

P: The advent of the thermonuclear bomb means that the first 20 or 30 hours of a major war would probably be decisive for the tight-packed British Isles, and Britain must therefore go all out to build up an atomic bomber force, capable of destroying Soviet bomber bases--either in coordination with the U.S. Strategic Air Command or independently of it.

P: Until 1960, U.S. supremacy in strategic air power will continue to deter the Russians from risking all-out war. SAC's nuclear bombers, the British reason, are already in a position to cripple the Soviet Union, whereas the Red air force is still incapable of knocking out the U.S.

P: By 1960, Soviet cities may be protected by guided-missile batteries, and the Soviet air force is expected to have hundreds of its new heavy bombers of sufficiently long range to drop nuclear bombs on the U.S.'s largest industrial centers.

P: From 1960 on, the strategic balance will begin to swing in favor of whichever side is quickest to find defenses against the other's offensive weapons. Scientific research is thus the most critical factor in the West's defense planning. Britain, which already spends at least one-tenth of its arms budget on research, will probably increase the proportion, hoping that in quality, if not in quantity, it can stay far ahead of the Soviet Union.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.