Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI)

Definition

The Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) was a proposed missile defense system intended to protect the United States from attack by ballistic strategic nuclear weapons. It was announced by President Ronald Reagan in 1983.

Related terms

Star Wars Program: This is another name for the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), coined due to its futuristic technology and space-based systems.

Ballistic Missile: A missile that follows a ballistic trajectory with the objective of delivering one or more warheads to a predetermined target.

Cold War: A period of geopolitical tension between powers in the Eastern Bloc and powers in the Western Bloc after World War II. The development of SDI was part of this larger conflict.