The Joint Chiefs of Staff, the atom bomb, the American military mind and the end of the Second World War
Abstract
The decision by the US government to drop the atomic bombs on Japan is one of the most heavily debated questions in history. This article examines one element of that debate, in many ways the most surprising. That was the different views of the top of the military hierarchy in the USA, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The JCS was on the whole more sceptical about using atomic weaponry than the USA’s civilian leadership, for ethical and strategic reasons. As such they were willing to consider very different ways of ending the war.
Citation
O'Brien , P P 2020 , ' The Joint Chiefs of Staff, the atom bomb, the American military mind and the end of the Second World War ' , Journal of Strategic Studies , vol. 42 , no. 7 , pp. 971-991 . https://doi.org/10.1080/01402390.2018.1559150
Publication
Journal of Strategic Studies
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
0140-2390Type
Journal article
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