The Third World War: The Untold Story
First edition cover
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| Author | Sir John Hackett |
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| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | War novel |
| Publisher | Sidgwick & Jackson |
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Publication date
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1982 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 446 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | (first edition, hardback) |
| 355.4/8 19 | |
The Third World War: The Untold Story is a novel by Sir John Hackett portraying a fictional Third World War between NATO and Warsaw Pact forces which breaks out in 1985, written in the style of a non-fiction, post-event historical account. It was published in 1982 by Macmillan in New York and Sidgwick & Jackson in London. The book is an update to Hackett's 1978 novel, The Third World War: August 1985.
The Third World War: The Untold Story was written to incorporate what were, while the author wrote the original book, recent geopolitical and technological developments. In an update to his original novel, Hackett introduces newly-arising themes, including the rise of Solidarity in Poland and the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese War. Additional new plot threads include material based on the proposed militarization of space and the eventual participation of Ireland and Sweden in the war. In addition, Hackett goes into more detail on Soviet planning and doctrine.
By the mid-1980s, the Soviet Politburo comes to the consensus that the country's economy is stagnating and its military may not retain superiority over the West for much longer. It would therefore be in the interests of the Soviet Union to invade Western Europe with a short, sharp blow, and then sue for peace from a position of strength.
The Politburo deliberates three attack options:
'Variant A' involves a sudden mass nuclear strike throughout the entire European theater, including Spain and Portugal. The Soviet Air Force and Aeroflot would drop Spetsnaz forces into areas not under nuclear attack. A land invasion of Western Europe would then follow intended to last 7 days, stopping at a line running from Linz-Frankfurt-Dunkirk.
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