The Cold War standoff between the Warsaw Pact and NATO exerts a continuing fascination for students of military history, wargamers, and alternate history. This 1979 CIA study provides all the detail necessary for a thorough understanding of how the world hung the balance at the moment the Soviets invaded Afghanistan.

The capabilities and readiness of the Warsaw Pact forces, including ground force divisions, airborne forces, special operations units, air forces, naval forces, tactical nuclear forces, and forces for chemical and electronic warfare, are analyzed. The assessment includes information on force composition, manpower, training, and major wartime tasks. Additionally, the study examines the Pact's command and control structure, as well as the potential use of nuclear weapons in theater warfare operations against NATO. The analysis highlights the Pact's focus on ground, air, and naval forces, as well as the importance of air defense systems and combat aircraft in potential operations.

This annotated edition illustrates the capabilities of the AI Lab for Book-Lovers to add context and ease-of-use to manuscripts. It includes several types of abstracts, building from simplest to more complex: TLDR (one word), ELI5, TLDR (vanilla), Scientific Style, and Action Items; acronymic, speakable, and singable mnemonics; essays to increase viewpoint diversity, such as Grounds for Dissent, MAGA Perspective; knock-offs of Tom Clancy and "The Americans"; and Notable Passages and Nutshell Summaries for each page.