MCNAMARA DISCOUNTS RUSSIAN ABMS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP70B00338R000300090029-5
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 9, 2006
• Sequence Number: 29
• Publication Date: March 19, 1967
• Content Type: NSPR

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Approved For Release 2006/01/30 : CIA-RDP70B00338R000300090029-5
McNamara Discounts Russian ABMs
By The Associated Press
Secretary of Defense Robert S.
McNamara has insisted anew
that Soviet antiballistic missiles
cannot be effective and has said
that despite them a U.S. strike-
back should kill 120 million
Russians.
And he added in testimony to
Senate committees:
"It's very easy to change the
pattern of targeting to raise that
upwards."
McNamara made these as-
sessments when he testified in
secret before the Armed Serv-
ices and Appropriations commit-
tees in late January.
Censored transcripts released
last night showed McNamara
repeatedly parrying the critical
questions of senators who feel
the United States should start
promptly the construction of
Nike X. antiballistic missile
defenses.
Questioners noted that the
Soviet Union already is building
antimissile installations around
Moscow and perhaps elsewhere.
Effectiveness Discounted
McNamara not only discount-
ed the effectiveness of these but
added that the Russians "have
an absolute religious fanaticism
on the subject of defense."
He said proof of this can be
found in their huge expenditures
on ground-to-air missile de-
fenses against bomber attacks-
installations which McNamara
said now are obsolete or unneed-
ed in a ballistic missile age.
He said this is based on Mos-
cow's fear of a first blow by the
United States, despite this
nation's tradition and policy of
never striking first.
In the event of a Soviet nu-
clear attack on the United
States, the retaliatory blow
would be aimed at their people,
McNamara made clear.
United States to spend the $401 But when McClellan asked for
-billion or more needed to deploy current estimates, McNamara
an extensive Nike X antimissile
system over a period of several said "I will be happy to give the
years.
Senator Russell Unconvinced.
But he added: "I only argue
against it because it costs $40
billion and wouldn't be effective
the Soviets would take
action to offset it. It isn't the $40
billions that concern me . . .
what we would buy in this case,
in my opinion, would offer no
addition to our security and no
addition to our defense."
It was obvious that McNa-
mara didn't convince all the
senators. Sen. Richard B. Rus-
sell D- ., c airman a the
Armed Services Committee,
voiced his misgivings this way:
"The first nation that gets an
effective antimissile and an-
tisubmarine device is going to
control the world. It is just that
committee the latest cost esti-
mates as soon as the analyses
are completed."
Want Them to Know
He put it this way: "I think we
could all agree that if they
struck us first, we are going to
target our weapons against their
society and . . destroy 120
millions of them." Later he
added that this toll easily could,
be raised.
Explaining his making public
of such estimates and other data
on U.S. nuclear capability, Mc-
Namara said it is because "we
want our people, our allies and
the Soviets, to be under no
misunderstanding as to our'
strength ...
"It isn't enough for us to have
the force. We ,must convince j
them we have it."
McNamara agreed that even
though Vietnam war costs are
running about $22 billion a year,
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