Soviet war scare. Soviet leaders became very skittish after the an-
nouncement, which may have contributed to the erroneous shootdown
of Korean Air Lines 007on 1 September 1983. Coupled with suspi-
cions over a NATO command exercise in November 1983, codenamed
ABLE ARCHER 83, that simulated release of nuclear weapons, the
Soviet leadership perceived a genuine threat and whipped the Soviet
public in late 1983 into a frenzy of fear. Radio Liberty (RL) interviews
with Soviet citizens traveling abroad suggested that the Soviet public
was genuinely alarmed. Even though the alert gradually subsided,
RYAN continued until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.See
alsoRADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY.SPACE SIGINT. SeeNATIONALRECONNAISSANCE OFFICE.SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR OF 1898. The Spanish-American War
took place between April and August 1898, with the goal of liberat-
ing Cubafrom Spanish occupation. At its end, the U.S. had acquired
the territories of Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Philippine Islands. The
war also elevated the United States to a world power.
The United States, through its Monroe Doctrine, which stipulated
U.S. opposition to any European colonial encroachment into the
Americas, had long been concerned over Spanish misrule of Cuba. In
1895, a revolution broke out on the island, possibly encouraged by
the U.S. government and private interests, which Spanish forces were
not equipped to quell. American newspapers, through their sensa-
tional accounts and exaggerated reports of Spanish oppression, did
much to stir up popular sentiment for the war. Americans also began
to demand that the United States should also become an imperial
power by acquiring naval and military bases.
In March 1898, President William McKinley sent demarches to
Spain, demanding full independence for Cuba. On 19 April 1898,
Congress passed a joint resolution asserting that Cuba was indepen-
dent. The resolution also authorized the use of the army and navy to
oversee the Spanish withdrawal. Based on this resolution, the U.S. on
25 April 1898 formally declared war against Spain.
During the brief conflict, the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI)
tapped into the undersea Spanish cables running in and out of Ha-188 • SPACE SIGINT05-398 (2) Dictionary.qxd 10/20/05 6:27 AM Page 188