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Declassified Cold War files reveal America’s extensive nuclear target list
Fox News ^ | December 24, 2015 | Fox News

Posted on 12/25/2015 1:30:51 AM PST by WhiskeyX

Newly declassified documents reveal the extent of America’s nuclear target list during the Cold War, showing the U.S. military was prepared to hit thousands of sites in the communist world stretching from Beijing to Moscow to East Berlin.

The 800 pages of documents from a 1956 plan known as the “Atomic Weapons Requirements Study” were released by the National Archives and published this week for the first time by the National Security Archive at George Washington University.

“As far as can be told, no comparable document has ever been declassified for any period of Cold War history,” the organization said, while calling the Strategic Air Command study a “chilling” document depicting plans to attack population centers filled with civilians.

The study includes thousands of targets or “designated ground zeros” -- spanning 1,200 cities.

According to the study, the goal was to undermine if not destroy Soviet air power and that mission was “paramount to all other considerations.” While most targets focused on military, industrial and agricultural centers, they also included populations in Moscow, Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), East Berlin, Warsaw and Beijing, among other cities.

(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 1956; coldwar; nato; nuclear; nuclearwar; nukes; soviet
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1 posted on 12/25/2015 1:30:51 AM PST by WhiskeyX
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To: WhiskeyX

Nothing new here....the Soviets had their list of sites in West Germany.


2 posted on 12/25/2015 2:21:23 AM PST by pepsionice
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To: WhiskeyX

My Dad’s target was Vladivostok. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, Dad was in VMA-214 in Hawaii. They were going to strap a nuclear warhead on his A-4, then he was going to drop it on Vladivostok.


3 posted on 12/25/2015 2:57:13 AM PST by MuttTheHoople (Yes, Liberals, I question your patriotism)
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To: MuttTheHoople

Was VMA-214 off a carrier?


4 posted on 12/25/2015 3:20:57 AM PST by Gaffer
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To: WhiskeyX

The nuclear war scared everyone so much that war never happened.


5 posted on 12/25/2015 3:45:15 AM PST by Steve Van Doorn (*in my best Eric Cartman voice* 'I love you, guys')
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To: Gaffer

VMA-214 was the old Black Sheep squadron. It was 20 years later, and none of the original Black Sheep were in it. They were stationed at Kanehoe Bay. He may have been placed on a carrier for this, I don’t know.


6 posted on 12/25/2015 4:00:32 AM PST by MuttTheHoople (Yes, Liberals, I question your patriotism)
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To: MuttTheHoople

Thanks....just curious. The other option was air/air refueling. I’ve also read that versions of the A4 were capable of “buddy refueling” so range could be extended that way using one or more buddy-tankers.


7 posted on 12/25/2015 4:03:35 AM PST by Gaffer
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To: pepsionice

True but why is the Obamabastard releasing this now?


8 posted on 12/25/2015 4:16:28 AM PST by ZULU (Mt. McKinley is the tallest mountain in N. America. Denali is Aleut for "scam artist.")
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To: WhiskeyX

Most of this has been known for decades...


9 posted on 12/25/2015 4:23:41 AM PST by tcrlaf (They told me it could never happen in America. And then it did....)
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To: WhiskeyX

Thank God we're still here. It's a game no one would have won.


10 posted on 12/25/2015 4:24:17 AM PST by McGruff (Merry Christmas)
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To: McGruff

Does anyone REALLY need to know these things? Certainly our enemies already have such a list and very likely a good deal more. Perhaps the media wants to assist those who would do us harm by suggesting some targets, albeit it is “old” information.


11 posted on 12/25/2015 4:31:16 AM PST by DaveA37
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To: WhiskeyX

Well, duh.

Nuclear war would have been (would be) Hell. Thankfully, it has not happened yet and hopefully it never will.


12 posted on 12/25/2015 4:46:48 AM PST by rbg81 (Truth is stranger than fiction)
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To: DaveA37

It is history. Some people think it is important to document.


13 posted on 12/25/2015 4:48:31 AM PST by Former Proud Canadian
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To: Former Proud Canadian

It’s not just history, but already well known history. There was another thread on these “revelations” here a couple day ago. Counter-value vs Counter-force targeting being in the public domain dates back to the 1950s; one reason for that is the Government wanted and even put that information in the public domain because signalling how we were going to fight acted as a deterrent.


14 posted on 12/25/2015 4:53:44 AM PST by tanknetter
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To: tanknetter
It's not just history, but already well known history. There was another thread on these "revelations" here a couple day ago.

1950s U.S. Nuclear Target List Offers Chilling Insight

15 posted on 12/25/2015 5:02:21 AM PST by Lonely Bull ("When he is being rude or mean it drives people _away_ from his confession and _towards_ yours.")
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To: WhiskeyX

Was a little surprised that East Berlin was in the list since the US Army maintained a reinforced Brigade in West Berlin, along with about 2000 USAF personnel plus families.


16 posted on 12/25/2015 5:36:14 AM PST by ops33 (Senior Master Sergeant, USAF (Retired))
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To: WhiskeyX

I remember the Weapons’ in West Germany. e had some good times with them. Always in the chem gear when we did our drills with the Nukes! If you ain’t AMMO you ain’t SHIT!!!!!


17 posted on 12/25/2015 5:41:32 AM PST by Busko (The only thing that is certain is that nothing is certain.)
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To: ZULU

He wants us to know how evil that was, and that he has corrected it.

All nukes are now aimed at red states........and the Bible Belt........


18 posted on 12/25/2015 6:07:11 AM PST by Arlis ( A "Sacred Cow" Tipping Christian)
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To: rbg81

Would have been hell for the Soviets and Europe but just really bad for the US. Everything I’ve read about a war in the 50’s postulated that maybe a dozen nukes would have hit America. The soviet ICBM force was small until the late 60’s, that’s why Cuba was so important to them. Their bombers would have been the real issue and getting through Canada would have been very hard for them.


19 posted on 12/25/2015 6:36:24 AM PST by Raymann
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To: Raymann

A dozen would have been bad enough. Luckily, Communism fell without a major war being waged. While Russia is resurgent, at least they are not Communist. One could almost argue that we are becoming more Communist (Socialist) than they are.

Of course, these days, the Muzzies seem like a bigger threat.


20 posted on 12/25/2015 6:41:02 AM PST by rbg81 (Truth is stranger than fiction)
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