Winston Churchill\u27s characterization of the Soviet Union as a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma may overstate Western understanding of the USSR\u27s national security decision-making. The evidence in this domain is sparse, and what we do have is incomplete. Indeed, the Soviets have taken extraordinary steps to maintain the black box that shields how and why their decisions are made. With these caveats in mind, knowledge of Soviet decision-making can be summed up in a few general statements. First, the Soviet leadership is an integrated political-military body, where political authority is dominant, but where the professional military retains an important influence. Second, the role of institutions and individuals varies within and between leaderships, according to the issue under consideration (e.g., doctrine, procurement, etc.), and between times of peace and war. The potential for evolution in the roles of institutions is particularly apparent in the current period of  perestroika.  Gorbachev has initiated changes that appear to be aimed at transforming the security decision-making apparatus. Finally, the historical record of decision-making in superpower crises indicates that the Soviet Union has been very cautious in confrontations with the United States, a tendency that need not prove true in future clashes

Campbell, Kurt M.

Legro, Jeffrey W.

English

University of Richmond

University of RichmondUR Scholarship RepositoryPolitical Science Faculty Publications Political Science1990Soviet National Security Decision MakingKurt M. CampbellJeffrey W. LegroUniversity of Richmond, jlegro@richmond.eduFollow this and additional works at: https://scholarship.richmond.edu/polisci-faculty-publicationsPart of the Political Theory CommonsThis Book Chapter is brought to you for free and open access by the Political Science at UR Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusionin Political Science Faculty Publications by an authorized administrator of UR Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contactscholarshiprepository@richmond.edu.Recommended CitationCampbell, Kurt, and Jeffrey W. Legro. "Soviet National Security Decision Making." In A Primer for the Nuclear Age, edited by GrahamT. Allison, Jr., et. al., 107-116. Lanham: University Press of America, 1990.Chapter 12 SOVIET NATIONAL SECURITY DECISION-MAKING by Kurt Campbell and Jeffrey W. Legro Winston Churchill's characterization of the Soviet Un-ion as a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma may overstate Western understanding of the USSR's national security decision-making. The evidence in this domain is sparse, and what we do have is incomplete. Indeed, the Soviets have taken extraordinary steps to maintain the black box that shields how and why their decisions are made. With these caveats in mind, knowl-edge of Soviet decision-making can be summed up in a few general statements. First, the Soviet leadership is an integrated political-military body, where political au-thority is dominant, but where the professional military retains an important influence. Second, the role of institutions and individuals varies within and between leaderships, according to the issue under consideration (e.g., doctrine, procurement, etc.), and between times of peace and war. The potential for evolution in the roles of institutions is particularly apparent in the cur-107 I 08 A PRIMER FOR THE NUCLEAR AGE rent period of "perestroika." Gorbachev has initiated changes that appear to be aimed at transforming the security decision-making apparatus. Finally, the histori-cal record of decision-making in superpower crises in-dicates that the Soviet Union has been very cautious in confrontations with the United States, a tendency that need not prove true in future clashes. The Actors The General Secretary, the Politburo, the Defense Council, and the General Staff represent the core of the national security apparatus. The Communist Party dominates life in the Soviet Union and the Politburo is its executive council. The Politburo, now composed of twelve full (voting) and eight candidate (non-voting) members, is headed by the General Secretary (Mikhail Gorbachev). The Defense Council links politicians and the military at the highest level and is thought to act as a powerful subcommittee of the Politburo, dealing with national security issues on a day-to-day basis. This shadowy body, which has been reconfigured several times since World War II, is chaired by the General Secretary and is believed to include the minister of defense, the minister, of foreign affairs, the KGB chief, and the chairman of the Council of Ministers (the head of the official govern-· ment administrative body), among others. Its rnembed have greater access to intelligence and military infor: mation than do other members of the Politburo and thus this council importantly shapes most national se: curity issues. SOVIET NATIONAL SECURITY 109 The General Staff, the command organ of the mili-tary services, is organizationally under the direction of the Ministry of Defense but has direct ties to the De-fense Council. In contrast with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, it is headed by one man (Army General Moiseyev) and has more power over the five individual military services (ground forces, air forces, strategic rocket forces, air defense troops, and navy). Leadership Change and Issue Areas The role of these different actors in decision-making varies with the power of the leader and with the type of issue under consideration. The power of the General Secretary vis-a-vis his col-leagues has tended to fluctuate over time. Usually the leader builds increasing authority as his tenure in office lengthens (Khrushchev is an important exception here). As his power grows, the General Secretary is increas-ingly able to act independently of his colleagues on the Politburo, and his individual style and preferences will have a greater influence on decisions. The decision-making style and substance. of different leaderships has also varied considerably. For example, the military under Brezhnev had much greater auton-omy and authority in its duties than was the case in the Stalin and Khrushchev periods. With Marshal Grechko's ascendance to full membership on the Politburo in 1973, the professional military had a direct say in the highest decision-making body of the Soviet Union. To-day the military is again being dominated by the aggres-sive political leadership of Gorbachev. In light of the 110 A PRIMER FOR THE NUCLEAR AGE decision to withdraw from Afghanistan, the conclusion of the INF treaty, and the unceremonious firing of high-ranking generals in the wake of the young German Mathias Rust's feat of landing a small plane in Red Square, and the unilateral reduction of the armed forces, speculation about military unhappiness with the Gorbachev leadership may be justified. Decision-making power is not only a product of insti-tutional affiliations, but of personalities as well. As the case of Marshal Ogarkov illustrates, a forceful individ-ual with clearly articulated views can have a significant: impact on policy. Although Ogarkov was removed in 1988 from his position as Chief of the General Staff, hi11 stress on the need for technological improvements ifl the Soviet conventional force posture has had a lastin~ influence. Another key determinant of the decision-makini process is the specific issue under consideration. The four most important issue areas are doctrine, force structure and procurement, arms control, and crisis management. 1. Doctrine. Military doctrine in the Soviet Union has two distinct levels: the "socio-political" and the "military-technical." The dominant socio-political level consideiS the nature, objectives, and initiation of war and is di<:-tated exclusively by the Party leadership. The subordi-nate military-technical level deals with assessing t)je threat, force structure, strategy, and troop preparatiofl, and has traditionally been considered the realm <)f military professionals. There is an inherent tensic>n between these two levels, as the socio-political level stresses war prevention, while the military-technical le-~'el emphasizes war preparation, particularly the principles of surprise, initiative, and preemption. The Soviet military wields significant influence ue-SOVIET NATIONAL SECURITY 111 cause of its traditional monopoly on military expertise and information. There has been no civilian structure, such as the U.S. Office of the Secretary of Defense, that parallels the military command. No institution, except in limited aspects the KGB, is able to challenge the military's interpretation of strategic requirements and planning needs or its estimates of the size and nature of military threats. Thus, despite having no formal vote in the major decision-making bodies, the military retains an important de facto authority. Gorbachev may be attempting to reduce this authority by, among other things, shifting oversight authority for defense budget matters to a standing Committee on Military Affairs, established in the new Soviet Parliament, and encour-aging more open debate on national security issues. Over the past two decades, the military's monopoly in the realm of strategic nuclear weapons has weakened somewhat as scientists and civilian analysts have begun to take part in policy matters, much the same way U.S. civilians did in the 1950s. In matters of conventional warfare, the monopoly remains largely intact. However, in this area, too, there have been indications under the Gorbachev leadership that the civilian role will be in-creased. 2. Force Structure and Procurement. The political lead-ership ·oversees all decisions and is probably directly involved with questions pertaining to major systems, especially weapons that require significant resources. Most requests for new weapons originate with the indi-vidual military services and are assessed and rational-ized by the General Staff. As weapons have become technologically more sophisticated, the academy of sci-ences and top science advisors have assumed increasing importance in weapons acquisition and R&D investment decisions. I 12 A PRIMER FOR THE NUCLEAR AGE 3. Anns Control. Decision-making in arms control is similar to deliberations on doctrine except that civilians outside the top leadership have a more prominent role. The chief Soviet negotiators have historically been sen-ior foreign ministry officials. Despite the military's ef-forts to deny information to even these diplomats, their role has grown as a function of their experience and the necessarily political nature of the arms control process. Under Gorbachev, the now ex-Chief of the General Staff, Marshal Akhromeyev, has played a key part in arms control negotiations at summit meetings. In this role, it is unclear whether he is a personal emissary of Gorbachev, the official representative of military inter-ests whose say is crucial, or both. Other civilian partici-pants in the arms control process include analysts in academic research institutes that study the \\est, whose knowledge has been applicable to the ongoing negotia-tions with the U.S. and its allies. Finally, scientists have become influential because of the crucial link between rapidly changing technology and national security af-fairs. 4. Crisis Management. Decision-making in a crisis will depend on the severity of the situation and the time frame available for choice. For example, in the case of a surprise attack, the General Secretary would make the launch decision on his own authority; the Soviets have their own equimlent to the U.S. President's "nuclear football," a briefcase with nuclear release codes which accompanies their leader. And in the case of a plane intruding into Soviet airspace, the top political leader-ship might not be contacted at all-as is purported to, have been the case with KAL 007-and the plane could be shot down according to standard operating proce-dures. There is no question that political officials have the SOVIET NATIONAL SECURITY 113 exclusive authority to release nuclear weapons for use. Soviet leaders are extremely concerned about un-authorized or accidental use of nuclear weapons, and they have gone to extensive lengths to prevent it. In the early days of the nuclear era, warheads were kept sepa-rate from delivery systems and were under the control of the KGB. Today, missiles of the strategic rocket forces are equipped with multiple key systems (which the U.S. calls permissive action links, PALs), and it is likely that Soviet submarines also have some sort of external con-trol device. In the case of tactical nuclear weapons held outside the Soviet Union, nuclear charges are still housed separately in special ammunition storage areas. It is probable that the KGB, with its own communica-tions network, continues to play a role in the control of nuclear weapons. As in the day-to-day formulation of national security policy, the locus of crisis decision-making is the Defense Council. This body appears to be a peacetime analogue of the State Defense Committee, a unified political-economic-military leadership organ which assumed su-preme command of the country in World War II (and would do so again if war breaks out). Despite the explicit dominance of civilian political officials in the Defense Council, the military can have a significant implicit influ-ence. The nature of a conflict situation demands exper-tise in military affairs and, in this realm, the prof es-sional soldiers by and large have exclusive authority. Because the General Staff acts as a secretariat for the Defense Council, it is also able to shape the agenda and decisions. More directly, the military is tasked to make a timely determination of an outbreak of hostilities and a potential enemy missile strike. Such a judgment would, of course, have an important impact in a crisis. This impact is of particular concern given the military's em-114 A PRIMER FOR THE NUCLEAR AGE phasis on offensive operations, especially the key role of preemption should a large-scale nuclear exchange ap-pear imminent. Although Gorbachev's "new thinking" in national security affairs has denounced preemption and promised to upgrade the importance of defense in Soviet strategic thought, the results in this area remain unclear. History of Soviet Decisions on Nuclear Weapons in Crises The historical record-albeit a very limited and opaque one-is somewhat at odds with an image of tht-Soviet leadership as an integrated political-military com-· mand where an offensive-minded military has consid·· erable influence. One might expect from such a leader·· ship a skillful manipulation of the armed forces fof political purposes and a military able to tilt the waf prevention/war preparation dilemma in favor of seizinp the initiative. In practice, however, the Soviet leadershif has been extremely cautious regarding the use of forcie in the few superpower crises that have occurred (thie Cuban missile crisis and the 1973 Middle East War are the most notable). Readiness levels of the Strategic Rocket Forces have never been raised as a means df demonstrating resolve. Furthermore, from what little we know, the military has not been particularly eager t0 advocate use of force in crises with the U.S. This record should not suggest that we can expect tHe USSR to roll over in future clashes. Most of our evidenc:e on Soviet crisis behavior comes from a period when tl':e U.S. enjoyed overwhelming nuclear superiority. This Is SOVIET NATIONAL SECURITY 115 no longer the case. Such a change, however, does not mean that future Soviet decisions in crises will err on the side of war preparation and initiation. -The Soviets are still constrained by a desire to avoid nuclear war and a uniquely disadvantageous geo-political situation. In any conflict, especially those involving nuclear weapons, the USSR is surrounded by potential adversaries, not the least of which is China. As Brezhnev has asserted, "There are two camps of nuclear weapons: those in the USSR and those aimed at the USSR." Soviet decisions in crises will be driven by a number of factors, including the composition of the particular leadership, the inter-national and regional balance of forces, and the specific interests at stake. As these factors vary, so too will policy choices. Conclusion Soviet national security decisions are made by an elite group of political and military Communist Party offi-cials. The nature of the decision-making process can vary with the power of the General Secretary, the partic-ular issue confronted, and the relative state of peace and war. Political authority is dominant, yet the military retains an important influence through its near-exclu-sive expertise in matters of armed conflict. The Gor-bachev leadership has indicated a desire to weaken this monopoly by establishing alternative sources of military planning and threat analysis, but the fate of such efforts remains uncertain. Finally, the history of Soviet deci-sions in superpower crises indicates that the USSR's 116 A PRIMER FOR THE NUCLEAR AGE leaders are hesitant to risk the possibility of a major conflict, especially a nuclear war, with the United States. For Further Reading Adomeit, Hannes. "Soviet Crisis Prevention and Management: Why and When Do the Soviet Leaders Take Risks?" Orbis, Vol. 30, No. 1 (Spring 1986), pp. 42-64. Alexander, Arthur. Decisionmaking in Soviet Weapons Procurement. Adelphi Papers No. 147 and 148. London; International Institute for Strategic Studies, 1978179. Gottemoeller, Rose E. "Decision Making for Arms Limitation in thtt Soviet Union." In Soviet Foreign Policy in a Changing World, edited by Robbin F. Laird and Erik P. Hoffmann, pp. 159-179. New York: Aldine Publishing Co., 1987. Holloway, David. "State, Society, and the Military under Gorbachev.'' International Security, Vol. 14, No. 3 (Winter 1989/90), pp. 5-24. Jones, Ellen. Red Army and Society. London: George Allen & Unwin• 1985. Legro, Jeffrey W. "Soviet Crisis Decisionmaking and the Gorbachev Reforms.'' Survival, Vol. 31, No. 4 (July/August 1989), pp. 339.-358. Meyer, Stephen M. "Soviet Nuclear Operations.'' In Managing Nu-clear Operations, edited by Ashton Carter, John Steinbruner, anP Charles A. Zraket, pp. 470-531. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution, 1987. Scott, Harriet Fast, and William F. Scott. The Armed Forces of the USSft· 3d ed. Boulder: Westview Press, 1984. Valenta, Jiri, and William Potter. Soviet Decisionmaking for Nation11 Security. London; George Allen & Unwin, 1984. Warner, Edward L. The Military in Contemporary Soviet Politics: Am Institutional Analysis. New York: Praeger, 1977. 

Soviet National Security Decision Making

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