The capabilities provided by this new generation of missiles will almost certainly destabilize the region. The incentives to preempt a feared attack will grow, and the costs of absorbing an attack will increase. This trend becomes especially disturbing given the growing interest in the Middle East in chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons, and the evident desire in many countries to arm their ballistic missiles with these unconventional weapons. By the 1990s, a large number of countries in the region will be able to fire salvos of missiles armed with chemical weapons, and several may have biological and nuclear capabilities as well. Efforts to enlist Soviet and Chinese participation in curbing the spread of missile technology are essential.
More sophisticated missiles are dependent on access to a variety of advanced technologies.
Through such a control regime, it may still be possible to significantly slow the spread of such weapons and raise the costs of obtaining such systems. All rights reserved.