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War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; Interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski, 1989

Part of War and Peace in the Nuclear Age.

12/02/1989

Zbigniew Brzezinski was the National Security Advisor to President Carter from 1977-1981. In the interview he discusses America’s relationship with Germany and the Soviet Union during the 1970s. He describes the changing tone of interactions between President Carter and Chancellor Schmidt, especially in response to the neutron bomb incident. He explains that although he did not agree with Carter’s decision not to deploy the neutron bomb, he also believes that Schmidt took advantage of the situation to blame Carter entirely. He describes the American response to the Soviet deployment of SS-20 missiles, and the eventual resolution of the INF problem under Chancellor Kohl. He ends by describing the changing relationship between America and its allies from the start of NATO through the 1980s.


License Clip
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Series
War and Peace in the Nuclear Age
Program
Zero Hour
Program Number

110

Title

Interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski, 1989

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

00:18:13

Asset Type

Raw video

Media Type

Video

Subjects
Kohl, Helmut, 1930-
Strategic Arms Limitation Talks II
Schmidt, Helmut, 1918 Dec. 23-
Soviet Union. Treaties, etc. United States, 1987 December 8
Giscard d'Estaing, Valery, 1926-
Callaghan, James, 1912-2005
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
Germany
Pershing (Missile)
Neutron bomb
Flexible response (Nuclear strategy)
Nuclear weapons
Soviet Union
Carter, Jimmy, 1924-
Unites States
Nuclear arms control
Genres
Documentary
Topics
History
War and Conflict
Global Affairs
Science
Contributors
Brzezinski, Zbigniew, 1928- (Interviewee)
Publication Information
WGBH Educational Foundation
Citation
Chicago: “War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; Interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski, 1989,” 12/02/1989, GBH Archives, accessed November 8, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_451AE9D3181A407C800F3ADF76F567FD.
MLA: “War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; Interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski, 1989.” 12/02/1989. GBH Archives. Web. November 8, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_451AE9D3181A407C800F3ADF76F567FD>.
APA: War and Peace in the Nuclear Age; Zero Hour; Interview with Zbigniew Brzezinski, 1989. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_451AE9D3181A407C800F3ADF76F567FD
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