What impact did intelligence have upon the arms race during the later Cold War (1968-1988)?

The last two decades of the Cold War featured an arms race, primarily between the US and the USSR. By the end of the 1980s, the USSR was withdrawing from that race, in large part on economic grounds, and the Cold War shortly thereafter drew to a peaceful close. This dissertation examines several aspects of that arms race and the effect of intelligence on each side’s reactions and counter-reactions. In particular, the differences between what was believed and acted on by one side, and the reality on the other, is explored, to assess the role and significance of intelligence in the process. It concludes that intelligence significantly drove aspects of that arms race in tactical and technical terms – though. sometimes, in mistaken directions. The question of whether the US used strategic intelligence to target specific technical and economic vulnerabilities remains unanswered: it is credible, but not proven