A deeply researched international history and exemplary study (New York Times Book Review) of how a divided world ended and our present world was fashioned, as the world drifts toward another great time of choosing. Two of America's leading scholar-diplomats, Philip Zelikow and Condoleezza Rice, have combed sources in several languages, interviewed leading figures, and drawn on their own firsthand experience to bring to life the choices that molded the contemporary world. Zeroing in on the key moments of decision, the might-have-beens, and the human beings working through them, they explore both what happened and what could have happened, to show how one world ended and another took form. Beginning in the late 1970s and carrying into the present, they focus on the momentous period between 1988 and 1992, when an entire world system changed, states broke apart, and societies were transformed. Such periods have always been accompanied by terrible wars -- but not this time. This is also a story of individuals coping with uncertainty. They voice their hopes and fears. They try out desperate improvisations and careful designs. These were leaders who grew up in a postwar world, who tried to fashion something better, more peaceful, more prosperous, than the damaged, divided world in which they had come of age. New problems are putting their choices, and the world they made, back on the operating table. It is time to recall not only why they made their choices, but also just how great nations can step up to great challenges. Timed for the thirtieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, To Build a Better World is an authoritative depiction of contemporary statecraft. It lets readers in on the strategies and negotiations, nerve-racking risks, last-minute decisions, and deep deliberations behind the dramas that changed the face of Europe -- and the world -- forever.

An absorbing study of the duels fought between the US Navy’s escort warships and Hitler’s U-boats between December 1941 and May 1945. Although the Battle of the Atlantic lasted several years, its most critical phase began once the United States entered World War II. By December 1941, the British had mastered the U-boat threat in the Eastern Atlantic, only to see the front abruptly expand to regions the US Navy would patrol, chiefly the Atlantic Seaboard. Unless the US Navy overcame the U-boat threat, the Allies would struggle to win. The Battle of the Atlantic was made up of thousands of individual duels: aircraft against U-boats, aircraft against aircraft, aircraft against ships—but most crucially, ships against U-boats. The individual clashes between Germany’s U-boats and the Allied warships escorting the vital convoys often comprised one-on-one actions. These stories provide the focus of this detailed work. The technical details of the U-boats, destroyers, and destroyer escorts involved are explored in stunning illustrations, including ship and submarine profiles and weaponry artworks, and key clashes are brought to life in dramatic battlescenes. Among the clashes covered are including USS Kearny vs. U-568, USS Roper (DD-147) vs U-85, USS Eugene E. Elmore (DE-686) vs U-549, and USS Atherton (DE-169) vs U-853.

This new volume straps the reader into the cockpit of the P-51B/C as the Mustang-equipped fighter groups of the 'Mighty Eighth' Air Force attempt to defend massed heavy bomber formations from deadly Luftwaffe fighters charged with defending the Third Reich. Luftwaffe Reichsmarschall Hermann Goering admitted that the appearance of long-range Mustangs over Berlin spelled the end of the Jagdwaffe's ability to defeat American daylight bombing. But the Mustang was far more than an escort - it was a deadly hunter that could out-perform nearly every German fighter when it was introduced into combat. Entering combat in Europe in December 1943, P-51Bs and P-51Cs had advantages over German Bf 109s and Fw 190s in respect to the altitude they could reach, their rate of climb and top speed. Initially tapped for close bomber escort, Mustangs were quickly turned loose to range ahead of the bomber stream in order to challenge German fighters before they could assemble to engage the bombers en masse. Thanks to the Mustang's superior performance, USAAF pilots effectively blunted the Luftwaffe's tried and tested tactic for destroying B-17s and B-24s. Boldness and aggression in aerial combat meant that P-51B/C pilots inflicted a rapidly mounting toll on their German counterparts in the West during the early months of 1944, contributing mightily to Allied air superiority over northern France on D-Day. This volume, packed full of first-hand accounts, expertly recreates the combat conditions and flying realities for Mustang pilots (including headline aces such as Don Blakeslee and Don Gentile, as well as lesser known aviators). It is heavily illustrated with photographs, artwork and innovative and colourful 3D ribbon diagrams, which will provide a realistic overview of the most dynamic dogfights in aviation history.

The Kriegsmarine's Scharnhorst was a German capital ship, described either as a battleship or battlecruiser, and the lead ship of her class, which included one other ship, Gneisenau. She was launched on 3 October 1936 and completed in January 1939, armed with nine 28cm C/34 guns in three triple turrets. She operated with Gneisenau for much of the early portion of World War II, including sorties into the Atlantic to raid British merchant shipping. They took part in Operation Weserubung (April-June 1940), the German invasion of Norway, during which they sank the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious and her escort destroyers Acasta and Ardent. Scharnhorst also sank HMS Rawalpindi in November 1939. In early 1943, Scharnhorst joined the Tirpitz in Norway to intercept Allied convoys to the Soviet Union. On a sortie from Norway to attack a convoy, the German force was intercepted by British ships and during the Battle of the North Cape (26 December 1943), HMS Duke of York and her escorts sank Scharnhorst. Most of her crew was lost. This is the most comprehensive examination of Scharnhorst ever published, drawing on new research and technology to tell the full story of the ship. It includes a complete set of detailed line drawings with fully descriptive keys and full-colour 3D artwork, supported by technical details, photographs, and text on the building of the ship, as well as a record of her service history.

Inspired by the recent discovery of mathematically calculated digital plans for a fourth-rate ship by the Deptford master shipwright, John Shish, The Master Shipwright's Secrets is an illustrated history of Restoration shipbuilding focused on the Tyger, one of the smaller but powerful two-deck warships of the period. It examines the proceedings of King Charles II in deciding the types of ship he wanted and his relationship with his master shipwrights.

This fascinating book reveals the many secrets of Charles II's shipwrights through an analysis of John Shish's plans for the Tyger, revealing innovative practical calculations which differ significantly from the few contemporary treatises on the subject and the complicated process of constructing the moulds necessary to make the ship's frame. All the other duties performed by the master shipwrights, such as repairing ships, controlling their men and keeping up with the latest inventions are also discussed in detail.

The Master Shipwright's Secrets is replete with beautiful and detailed illustrations of the construction of the Tyger and explores both its complicated history and its complex rebuilding, complete with deck plans, internal sections, and large-scale external shaded drawings. The title also explores associated ships, including another fourth-rate ship, the Mordaunt, which was purchased into the Navy at the time and underwent a dimensional survey by John Shish. A rare contemporary section drawing of another fourth-rate English ship and constructional drawings of Shish's later fourth-rate ship, St Albans, are also included.

This updated edition of this essential collection of historic writings by the pre-eminent scientists and historians who bore witness to the birth of the modern nuclear age now includes President Barack Obama's 2016 statement at Hiroshima, all-new writings from Japanese survivors of the atomic bomb, and a new foreword by Cynthia C. Kelly.Born out of a small research program that began in 1939, the Manhattan Project would eventually employ more than 130,000 people and cost a total of nearly $2 billion--all operating entirely under a shroud of secrecy. This groundbreaking collection of essays, articles, documents, and excerpts from history, biographies, plays, novels, letters, and oral histories, newly updated on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, is the first ever to source such primary history about the creation of the atomic bomb. Included is President Barak Obama's 2016 statement at Hiroshima, as well as new perspectives from hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors) and the mayors of Hisorshima and Nagasaki. Also included are writings by and about J. Robert Oppenheimer, Leo Szilard, Albert Einstein, Richard Feynman, Leslie Groves, Klaus Fuchs, Henry Stimson, Harry S Truman, Vannevar Bush, Niels Bohr, and many other key figures and authors including Joseph Kanon, Jennet Conant, Kai Bird, and Martin Sherwin. The Manhattan Project is the most comprehensive exploration of the making of the atomic bomb available today.

This title tells the story of an iconic aircraft from World War II, that is illustrated with over 250 colour and black and white photographs. It takes you through the creation, construction, production and history of the Spitfire, as well as its role in the major battles of the war. It includes moving first-hand accounts from the pilots who flew the Spitfires, including both their experiences in combat and the way of life for the RAF at that time. It features a fascinating and engaging narrative written by a leading military history expert. It lists sites where surviving Spitfires can be viewed today so you can go and see this incredible aircraft for yourself. It compares the Spitfire with other great fighters - both Axis and Allied - in the skies at the time. It shows how the famous fighter plane had its origins in a series of trophy-winning seaplanes from the 1920s and 1930s, and how it was developed. This engrossing book retells the story of the iconic aircraft of World War I. It goes into the heart of the action, showing what it was like to fly a spitfire in the Battle of Britain, and tells the moving stories of the brave young pilots who flew this all-conquering machine. In addition, this book lists where surviving planes can be seen today so that you see the incredible aircraft for yourself. The fascinating and informed text, written by a leading expert in the field and accompanied by over 250 stunning contemporary and historical photos, make this the ultimate reference for anybody with an interest in military history or aviation.

Examines Eighth Army's 1,000-strong tank force - rebuilt, reorganized, and equipped with brand-new Sherman and Churchill tanks - that secured victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein. When Eighth Army retired into the defensive line at El Alamein on 30 June 1942, it was tired, dispirited and had lost almost all its tanks during a string of defeats at Gazala, Tobruk and Mersa Matruh. After savage defensive fighting at First Alamein, the reinforced Desert Rats defeated Rommel's last offensive in a tank-to-tank clash at Alam Halfa in September. The next month, a completely rebuilt and reorganized Eighth Army, equipped with over 1,000 tanks including the American M4 Sherman, launched the offensive that would finally drive Rommel out of Africa. Montgomery shaped the Eighth Army according to his own military ideas, and on 23 October was able to attack the Axis defenses with the largest force of armoured divisions in its history, with the 1st, 8th and 10th united in a new 'corps de chasse' intended to defeat the Afrika Korps at its own game, and the 7th and two infantry support tank brigades assigned to support the XXX and XIII Corps. With the exception of the A9, 10 and 13 cruisers of 1940-41, as the offensive began, the Eighth Army contained every type of tank employed during the North Africa campaign. Using detailed illustrations of the tanks involved with an analysis of the tactics employed for battle, this is a focused examination of the tank forces that won the Second Battle of El Alamein - the most famous British Army victory of World War II, and one of the turning points of the war.

The US-designed and built McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet carrier-borne, multi-role fighter is one of the most important Fourth Generation fighters in the world. Its twin-engine, twin-tails (canted outwards) and leading edge root extensions make it one of the most recognisable fighters in operation. The latest version is the enlarged Super Hornet. Author Steve Davies lifts the panels on this 'king' of the US Navy's Fleet Defenders to review its design, construction and operation, including detailed personal insights by USN personnel of flying and maintaining the mighty Hornet/Super Hornet.

This study looks at how the Soviet armed forces developed and deployed a range of machine guns that fitted with their offensive and defensive infantry tactics across six years of total war. In 1939, three machine guns dominated the Red Army's front-line infantry firepower - the DShK 1938 heavy machine gun, the PM M1910 medium/heavy machine gun and the Degtyaryov DP-27, a lighter, bipod-mounted support weapon. Confronted by cutting-edge German technology during the Great Patriotic War (1941-45), the Soviets responded with the development of new weaponry, including the RPD light machine gun, the 7.62x54mmR SG43 medium machine gun and the improved version of the DP-27, the DPM. Taken together, all these weapons gave the Red Army a more practical range of support weapons, better able to challenge the Germans for fire superiority on the battlefield. Fully illustrated, this study explains the technology and the tactics of these machine guns. Noted authority Chris McNab sets out how these machine guns were distributed and tactically applied and provides numerous examples of the weapons in action, from assault teams on the streets of Stalingrad to tank crews struggling for survival at Kursk. The book also reflects upon the weapons' post-war service; many of the machine guns remain in front-line use today. Illustrated with high-quality photographs and specially commissioned artwork, this is a deep analysis of these essential tools of warfare within the Soviet forces.

World War II saw the development of the heavy bomber as a decisive weapon which, in sufficient numbers, could overcome defensive fighters and guns and lay waste to strategic targets. The addition of nuclear weapons to the bomber's armament made it even more formidable, and by the late 1940s, US planners saw the growth of a Soviet nuclear-armed bomber fleet as a terrifying threat to North American security. Conventional subsonic fighters with guns and free-flight air-to-air rockets would be incapable of reaching these incoming bombers in time to prevent even one from delivering a devastating nuclear attack. As a result, supersonic speed, long-range guided missiles and precise radar-based control of an interception became prerequisites for a new breed of fighters, beginning with the F-102. A massive research and development effort produced the F-102A '1954 Fighter', the J57 afterburning turbojet, its Hughes MX-1554 fire control system and, in due course, the Semi-Active Ground Environment (SAGE) radar and communications network that covered North America to guide its airborne defences. In service, F-102As also provided air defence in Europe with USAFE, in the Far East and in Southeast Asia, where they protected US airbases in South Vietnam and Thailand from air attack by North Vietnamese fighters and bombers and escorted B-52s and fighter-bombers on their attack sorties. This illustrated study from leading expert Peter E. Davis details the design, development, and deployment of the futuristic F-102, including its complex research program and role in Vietnam.

In spite of the relatively small numbers involved, the Tiger I and Tiger II tanks of the German Army and Waffen-SS heavy Panzer formations played a central role in resisting the Allied invasion of France in the summer of 1944\. British and American tank crews found to their dismay that the Tigers could survive numerous hits while a single round from one of their 88mm guns was enough to penetrate the strongest armour. In his latest book in the TankCraft series Dennis Oliver uses archive photographs and painstakingly researched, exquisitely presented colour illustrations to examine the part these powerful tanks played in the Normandy battles and also the units that operated them. As with previous titles, a large part of this book showcases available model kits and aftermarket products and accessories, complemented by a gallery of skillfully constructed and painted models. Descriptions of technical details as well as modifications introduced during production and in the field are also provided giving the modeller all the information and knowledge required to recreate authentic miniature representations of the Panthers that fought in the fields and hedgerows of Normandy during the summer of 1944.

For the first time ever, compare the British and German World War II big guns duelling with each other and harrying shipping in the Channel. One of the longest-running battles of World War II took place across the English Channel, in which huge artillery guns attempted to destroy each other, created psychological terror among the local inhabitants living near the coast, and harassed shipping over a four-year period. Neil Short examines the array of powerful weapons located across the Strait of Dover. Superb colour artworks explore both fixed gun batteries (including 'Jane' and 'Clem', and batteries Todt and Lindemann) and railway artillery (such as the German K5 and K12 guns, and the British 18in. 'Boche Buster'). Construction and targeting technology used by each side are also covered in detail, and the locations of all the major sites around Dover and Calais are pinpointed on easy to follow maps.

Are nuclear weapons useful for coercive diplomacy? Since 1945, most strategic thinking about nuclear weapons has focused on deterrence - using nuclear threats to prevent attacks against the nation's territory and interests. But an often overlooked question is whether nuclear threats can also coerce adversaries to relinquish possessions or change their behavior. Can nuclear weapons be used to blackmail other countries? The prevailing wisdom is that nuclear weapons are useful for coercion, but this book shows that this view is badly misguided. Nuclear weapons are useful mainly for deterrence and self-defense, not for coercion. The authors evaluate the role of nuclear weapons in several foreign policy contexts and present a trove of new quantitative and historical evidence that nuclear weapons do not help countries achieve better results in coercive diplomacy. The evidence is clear: the benefits of possessing nuclear weapons are almost exclusively defensive, not offensive.

Living With Landmines looks in detail at the de-mining work now underway in Cambodia and Mozambique through the eyes of those most concerned: farmers, de-miners, an amputee and a Canadian soldier seconded as a technical advisor. It raises the question as to whether or not there is a de-mining technology which will allow faster, more affordable de-mining under the control of the farmers themselves, and suggests that there is one indeed.

" This revised and updated edition identifies the cultural factors and specific administrative agendas that have shaped the way we view ballistic missile technology. Three new sections connect our recent, sudden shifts in foreign policy to ongoing historical patterns. Whether cautioning against the "almost neurotic pursuit of absolute security" or examining the powerful influence of religion on military buildup, Ernest J.Yanarella uncovers the deeply ingrained attitudes that will determine the future of American missile defense.

The 'ShipCraft' series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject class, highlighting differences between sister-ships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring colour profiles and highly detailed line drawings and scale plans. The modelling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the ships, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit. This is followed by an extensive photographic survey of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research references - books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites.The subject of this volume is the seven-ship New Orleans class, probably the US Navy's most hard-fought heavy cruisers of the War - three were sunk in action but others survived massive damage, and by 1945 three out of four of the navy's most decorated ships were of this class. Although designed within treaty limitations, they proved powerful and well-balanced ships, and their unparalleled fighting record makes them popular modelling subjects.

The Bristol Blenheim was one of the most popular British aircraft at the beginning of World War II. It was a very versatile and modifiable machine, and therefore typical bomber, reconnaissance, and fighter (including night) versions were created. The first mass-produced version was the Mk I, which featured a richly glazed nose part of the fuselage. The most common version in the air force of several countries was the Mk IV, in which the glass nose of the aircraft was extended so that the bombardier could lie freely in a special cradle during targeting. The nose of the fuselage had an asymmetrical “dent” on the left side of the fuselage (in its upper part), providing better visibility for the pilot sitting in a separate cockpit. This version also had more powerful engines and a longer range, but slightly lower speed and ceiling.

The intense and polemical debate over the legality and morality of weapons systems to which human cognitive functions are delegated (up to and including the capacity to select targets and release weapons without further human intervention) addresses a phenomena which does not yet exist but which is widely claimed to be emergent. This groundbreaking collection combines contributions from roboticists, legal scholars, philosophers and sociologists of science in order to recast the debate in a manner that clarifies key areas and articulates questions for future research. The contributors develop insights with direct policy relevance, including who bears responsibility for autonomous weapons systems, whether they would violate fundamental ethical and legal norms, and how to regulate their development. It is essential reading for those concerned about this emerging phenomenon and its consequences for the future of humanity.

Spanning over a period of more than five decades since its inception, Iran's nuclear programme is the most protracted civilian nuclear program in the world and one of the most politicized projects in Iran's history. 'Iran and the Nuclear Question' offers a historiographical portrait of Iran's early nuclear program under Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi. Using declassified archival material, the book thematically chronicles the program's genesis, evolutionary trajectory, and devolution from the 1950s through to the 1970s. It also catalogues the Revolutionary Iran's early socialization into the atom and the Islamic Republic's gradual change of heart about nuclear energy that culminated in the incremental resuscitation of the Shah's nuclear enterprise in the 1980s. As the first archive-based account of one of the most long-lasting and capital-intensive nuclear enterprises during the Cold War, 'Iran and the Nuclear Question' is a valuable resource for students and scholars of Iranian, Middle East and Security Studies. Written in a clear and accessible format, it will also appeal to those with a more general interest in Iran and its nuclear journey.

In 2000, quite by chance, aircraft restorer Guy Black of Aero Vintage located the hulks of at least two Airco DH9 bombers in a remote part of India hidden away in what had been a Maharaja s elephant stable at his palace in Bikaner, Rajasthan. They were truly remarkable finds, and extremely rare examples of a near-extinct and important WWI aircraft type none of which had survived in Britain.Recognizing their importance to the UK s aviation heritage, and excited by the challenge of restoration, Guy set about negotiating their purchase and returning them back to England. His colleague and author, Andy Saunders journeyed twice to India to complete the transaction and dismantle and pack them a process not without massive difficulties and challenges. Now one of them will fly again Here the whole intriguing story is told fully illustrated step-by-step from discovery to recovery, through to research, restoration, reconstruction and first flight, all in fascinating, meticulous detail. Also covered is the account of the restoration of the first DH9 to be completed, now housed as a non-flying exhibit at the IWM Duxford.

When the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 effectively banned the building of battleships, competition between the major navies concentrated on the next most powerful category, heavy cruisers limited to 10,000 tons displacement and 8-inch guns. Italy followed this trend, the first design for what became Trento and Trieste being ordered in 1924. These were the fastest of the first generation Treaty' cruisers but were very lightly armoured, and the succeeding Zara class of four ships were slower but better protected. However, before the final ship of this class (Pola) had been completed, there was a return to the earlier fast, lightly protected concept with the Bolzano, although this ship also incorporated aspects of the Zara design. The political background, design history and technical features of these classes are covered in great depth in this volume. They were important ships, subject to incremental improvement so no two were identical, and modelmakers in particular will appreciate the space devoted to the variations in appearance, using both description and illustration. As major units of the Italian battlefleet, they were more active than most during the war and their careers are fully detailed, including analyses of damage suffered. Tragically, they were all sunk and the full circumstances of each loss is explored. As befits a technical history, the book is thoroughly illustrated with ship and armament plans, detail drawings and colour camouflage schemes, as well as an outstanding collection of photographs. Translated from the same series that produced the highly successful Italian Battleships, this volume is a fitting companion.

This volume is based on a multidisciplinary approach towards biological and chemical threats that can, and have been previously used in bioterrorism attacks around the globe. Current knowledge and evidence-based principles from the fields of synthetic biology, microbiology, plant biology, chemistry, food science, forensics, tactics, infective medicine, psychology and others are compiled to address numerous aspects and the complexity of bioterrorism attacks. The main focus is on biological threats, especially in the context of synthetic biology and its emerging findings that can be observed as possible threat and tool. The book examines microorganisms and their possible use in forensics, i.e. as possible detection tool that could enable fast and precise detection of possible treats. A number of plant derived components are also discussed as possible agents in bioterrorism attacks, and in relation to infectious disease pathology. Another integral part is food safety, especially in terms of large food supply chains, like airline caterings, institutionalized kitchens etc. Food can be observed as a possible mean of delivery of various agents (biological and chemical) for bioterrorism attacks. Steps on how to recognize specific critical points in a food supply chain, along with proposed corrective activities are discussed. Examples from around the globe, along with the methodological approach on how to differentiate bioterrorism attacks from other epidemics are provided. However, epidemics are also discussed in the context of migrations, with the special emphasis on the current refugee migrations that affect not only Europe, but also the United States. The book will be of interest to experts from various fields of science as well as professionals working in the field. The book encompasses examples and tools developed for easier, more specific, and faster detection of possible bioterrorism treats, along with proposed actions for some aspects of a bioterrorism attack.

The Panzers that rolled over Europe were Germany's most famous fighting force, and are some of the most enduring symbols of World War II. However, at the start of the war, Germany's tanks were nothing extraordinary and it was operational encounters such as facing the Soviet T-34 during Operation Barbarossa which prompted their intensive development. Tactical innovation gave them an edge where technological development had not, making Hitler's tanks a formidable enemy.

Hitler's Tanks details the development and operational history of the light Panzer I and II, developed in the 1930s, the medium tanks that were the backbone of the Panzer Divisions, the Tiger, and the formidable King Tiger, the heaviest tank to see combat in World War II. Drawing on Osprey's unique and extensive armour archive, Chris McNab skilfully weaves together the story of the fearsome tanks that transformed armoured warfare and revolutionised land warfare forever.