The Warsaw Pact: An Inside History 1955-1991 (CSS Studies in Security and International Relations)

This is the first history of the Warsaw Pact that analyzes and interprets the history of the Warsaw Pact on the basis of the archives of the alliance itself.The Warsaw Pact shows that the Soviet bloc military machine that held the West in awe for most of the Cold War does not appear from the inside as formidable as outsiders often believed, nor were its strengths and weaknesses the same at different times in its surprisingly long history, extending for almost half a century. The study assesses the controversial origins of the 'superfluous' alliance, its subsequent search for a purpose, its crisis and consolidation despite congenital weaknesses, as well as its unexpected and largely unwanted demise - a story replete with lessons about the limitations of military power in the contemporary world.This book will be of great interest to students of the Warsaw Pact, Cold War History, and strategic studies in general.Mastny, Vojtech is the author of 'The Warsaw Pact: An Inside History 1955-1991 (CSS Studies in Security and International Relations)', published 2008 under ISBN 9780415405003 and ISBN 0415405009.