Credible peacetime strength can give states more room to negotiate because war leaves too much to chance. The critique of the Western peace dividend is that some states treated their post-Cold War technological advantage as self-sustaining. That belief encouraged repeated force reductions instead of continued investment. In this interpretation, buying immediate strength gave China room to continue experimenting with domestic designs while reducing its vulnerability.
Notable Point · 45:15-46:58
Deterrence, strength, and the peace dividend
The Sovremenny purchase becomes a case study in why credible strength can deter war and why a long peace dividend can erode that confidence.