Security Policy
All security policies are intended to resolve or prevent military conflict. However, not all of them proved to be effective or right as it is seen from the history. Considering historical lessons, it can be assumed that in modern world appeasement is the most effective security strategy.
The nuclear deterrence was the principal security policy during the Cold War and was implemented to decrease aggression against the United States and its allies. It has been successful through 40-plus years of Cold War. However, its utility in the 21st century is highly problematic due to the different conditions. Nowadays, deterrence looks like yesterday’s solution as it can solve only problems of the past (Gray, 2003).
Similarly, the strategy of preventive war is also filed as a history which gave people a few lessons. After the Cold War, the Unite States were seeking where to use nuclear weapons. At that time the confidence in deterrence was not as strong as it was before. Since the biggest enemy of America was terrorist organizations, a war on terrorism was highlighted by the preventive war against Iraq (Record, 2004). It showed that preventive war contradicts the international rule that a nation may launch a military attack against other nation only in strict self-defense (Lobel, 2006). Therefore, the legality of the Iraq war has been hotly debated.
It may seem that Americans loathe everything connected to appeasement and resolved conflicts using military forces only. It has been argued that appeasement cannot be effective because one of them led to the outbreak of the Second World War. However, it failed because Hitler was both unappeasable and undeterrable. Notably, the deterrence policy has been actively used by the USA since war unlike the appeasement (Record, 2014).
Considering all lessons the history gave people, there is a need to implement appeasement as a primary security policy to save peace and avoid senseless deaths.
References
Gray, C. S. (2003). Maintaining Effective Deterrence. ARMY WAR COLL STRATEGIC STUDIES INST CARLISLE BARRACKS PA.
Lobel, J. (2006). Preventive War And The Lessons Of History. U. Pitt. L. Rev., 68, 307.
Record, J. (2004). Nuclear Deterrence, Preventive War, And Counterproliferation. Cato Institute.
Record, J. (2014). Appeasement Reconsidered: Investigating The Mythology Of The 1930s. Pickle Partners …
