The United States, Britain and the Military Atom: Retrospect and Evaluation

Abstract

The preceding account of the evolution of American and British policies towards the development of nuclear technology for military purposes in the United Kingdom offers grounds for arguing that it can best be understood in the context of a chronological movement from one type of relationship to another. Concepts of dependency, interdependency and self-sufficiency play a central role in describing this progression, but the civil/military divide, the nature of state decision-making systems and weapon development processes are less visibly linked to these chronological stages, and, in some cases, impinge upon what was occurring in a random fashion. As a consequence the types of dependency, interdependency and self-sufficiency found within the Anglo-American nuclear relationship will be examined first (together with a breakdown of the period into chronological stages), followed by the interrelationship between these stages and the other ideas.