GBH Openvault

War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; 8th Infantry Division West Germany

Part of War and Peace in the Nuclear Age.

08/23/1974

Various shots of 155mm self-propelled Howitzer tanks firing in field.

Series

War and Peace in the Nuclear Age

Program

Zero Hour

Program Number

110

Title

8th Infantry Division West Germany

Series Description

The first atomic explosion in the New Mexico desert on July 16, 1945, changed the world forever. This series chronicles these changes and the history of a new era. It traces the development of nuclear weapons, the evolution of nuclear strategy, and the politics of a world with the power to destroy itself.

In thirteen one-hour programs that combine historic footage and recent interviews with key American, Soviet, and European participants, the nuclear age unfolds: the origin and evolution of nuclear weapons; the people of the past who have shaped the events of the present; the ideas and issues that political leaders, scientists, and the public at large must confront, and the prospects for the future. Nuclear Age highlights the profound changes in contemporary thinking imposed by the advent of nuclear weapons. Series release date: 1/1989

Program Description

President Reagan and Soviet Secretary Gorbachev sign the INF Agreement to eliminate an entire class of nuclear weapons from Europe. No one had expected the European Missile Crisis to end this way.

The story begins in 1979, when the Western Allies were worried about the Soviet Union’s buildup of SS-20 nuclear missiles aimed at Western Europe. Under pressure from the Carter Administration, NATO issued a threat, if the SS-20s were not removed, NATO would install new American missiles in Europe. The threat revived the dormant anti-nuclear movement in Western Europe, giving them an anti-American tone. In 1981, President Reagan made a proposal that the US would cancel deployment of the missiles if the Soviet Union would dismantle all the intermediate range missiles it had pointed at Europe. This was the “zero-zero” option. The Soviet Union was entering a period of change with three leaders dying in three years. In 1986 Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev offered to accept the “zero-zero” option and in 1987 the INF agreement was signed.

Duration

00:01:22

Asset Type

Stock footage

Media Type

Video

Subjects

Military weapons

Locations

Baumholder, West Germany

Genres

Documentary

Topics

War and Conflict

History

Global Affairs

Science

Rights Summary

In perpetuity ; Public Domain Rights Holder: NAFB

Citation

Chicago: “War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; 8th Infantry Division West Germany,” 08/23/1974, GBH Archives, accessed November 28, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_36CB11F78C704CB6AB2F84ABF17F13B6.

MLA: “War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; 8th Infantry Division West Germany.” 08/23/1974. GBH Archives. Web. November 28, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_36CB11F78C704CB6AB2F84ABF17F13B6>.

APA: War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; 8th Infantry Division West Germany. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_36CB11F78C704CB6AB2F84ABF17F13B6